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Regenerative agriculture

Landscape

 

Our Net Zero Roadmap shows that nearly two-thirds of our greenhouse gas emissions come from agriculture, so addressing these is essential for achieving our objectives.

Our aim is to make regenerative agriculture practices the standard in the food industry – addressing environmental and social aspects holistically. Reforming the way the world grows food will take time. That’s why we’re investing heavily in supporting agricultural communities for the long term.

We work closely with suppliers and farmers to encourage them to take up these ways of working, which is also expected to help us reach net zero and deliver benefits to nature and communities.

Toward more regenerative agriculture practices on farms

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Key ingredients sourced from farmers adopting regenerative agriculture practices

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Note: In 2024, the following ingredients are included in the numerator: dairy (fresh milk and dairy derivatives), coffee (excluding blended green coffee and Blue Bottle Coffee), cocoa, cereals and grains, soy and vegetables. The denominator includes all raw materials in scope: coffee (excluding blended green coffee and Blue Bottle Coffee), cocoa, dairy (fresh milk and dairy derivatives), sugar, cereals and grains, meat, poultry and eggs, palm oil, soy, vegetables, fish and seafood (excluding co and byproducts).

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What is regenerative agriculture?

Regenerative agriculture is a holistic approach to farming that actively supports the three key agricultural resources – biodiversity, water and soil – and which can benefit communities as part of a just transition.

The Nestlé model brings regenerative agriculture to life through five pillars: biodiversity; water stewardship; soil health; diverse cropping systems and livestock integration, and collective and landscape action.

The main pillars of regenerative agriculture

  • Diverse cropping systems & livestock integration
    We aim to integrate livestock and optimize grazing in farming systems when feasible and relevant.

    Our work includes using silvopasture – where trees are introduced into areas used for livestock grazing – alongside mixed farming of livestock and crops.

    Expected benefits include protection (for plant and animal life) from sun and wind, organic fertilization, improved water and manure management and habitats conducive to other species like insects and birdlife. These approaches can also provide additional sources of farm income.
    livestock on open pasture
  • Soil health
    To grow the food that we and our pets eat, we need arable land and healthy soil.

    Healthier soils have a greater ability to absorb and store carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, because they have higher levels of organic matter than degraded soils. Plus, soil with higher levels of organic matter can retain water more effectively. By holding on to water, soil can provide a buffer against the impacts of hotter weather or drought, contributing to the resilience of the farm.

    We are helping to scale up farming practices that help protect soil health and increase soil organic matter by launching regenerative agriculture initiatives through our Farmer Connect program, which works closely with more than 500 000 farmers and 150 000 suppliers as well as local communities.

    Initiatives include crop rotation, mulching, organic fertilizers and minimizing tillage.
    a hand holding healthy rich soil
  • Collective & landscape actions
    Regenerative agriculture practices can look beyond individual farms to entire landscapes to help protect endangered natural resources through, for example, regional reforestation projects, protection of shared water resources and the creation of green ‘corridors’ aimed at fostering biodiversity.

    The benefits can be felt not just by farmers, but entire communities in terms of welfare, profitability and reduced emissions.
    a river running through a green landscape
  • Biodiversity, collective & landscape actions
    We aim to safeguard and increase biodiversity above and below the ground. Plant life can be enhanced with more diversified crops, intercropping or planting cover crops between harvests, while encouraging more abundant microbes, fungi and animal life – including invertebrates, insects and bird life – can contribute to improved soil nutrient cycles, pollination, fertility and productivity.

    Ecosystems that exist in this kind of natural equilibrium can also enhance farmers’ resilience to climate change. In farms and landscapes we source from, Nestlé is supporting farmers by providing shade and fruit trees that provide protection for crops.
    Field with red flowers
  • Water stewardship
    Protecting the quality of natural waters and stewarding of scarce water resources is essential to regeneration. We recognize the need to play our part in helping to protect water sources: at Nestlé Waters, our bottled-water business; throughout our agricultural supply chain and production operations; and in the communities where Nestlé has an impact.

    A more strategic approach to irrigation – from sprinkler, to drip and sub-service irrigation – minimizes water evaporation compared to surface irrigation. Digital technology is also helping farms understand when land requires water, which can prevent over-use.

    We also aim to reduce chemical farm inputs and optimize organic fertilization and biological pest control to reduce run-off.
    River

A just transition

Regenerative agriculture puts people at the center, supporting solutions that are right for their regions and crops. We understand that shifting from traditional practices to new ways of farming can be difficult, which is why we follow a holistic approach that includes finance and incentives, training, and creating market demand for ingredients grown on farms that have adopted regenerative agriculture practices. This is especially important for smallholder farmers who may not have the financial resources to make these investments. We cannot do this alone. We need policymakers to work with the private sector to build strong ecosystems to encourage the adoption of regenerative approaches.

To mitigate the impact of climate change on the coffee supply chain and to ensure that sustainably grown coffee is available to future generations, Nestlé is harnessing its agricultural sciences capabilities. Using traditional breeding methods, our plant scientists and agronomists have developed Star 4, a novel high-yielding Arabica coffee variety.

Selected in Brazil for its resilience, the new variety also possesses the characteristic taste of Brazilian coffee. The development of locally relevant solutions such as Star 4 also contributes to the Nestlé Agriculture Framework promoting sustainable farming practices and responsible sourcing.

In Côte d’Ivoire, our income accelerator program is enabling cocoa farming families to raise their incomes, keep children in school and benefit the local environment. Working with smallholder farmers to build skills and knowledge, they are using techniques to improve the quality of the local soils while developing new revenue streams by growing a wider variety of crops.

In Indonesia, we are piloting a weather insurance program for more than 800 smallholder coffee farmers that supply coffee to the Nescafé brand. The insurance scheme, in collaboration with Blue Marble, a specialist in climate insurance, provides financial protection to help farmers cope with unpredictable weather patterns of rainfall and severe drought.

Piloting success

Our Agriculture Framework, guided by agro-ecological principles and practices is a holistic model that considers healthy, organically rich soil as vital to protecting and restoring land.

It encourages our suppliers and farmers to adopt regenerative agriculture practices that make sense locally. These might include planting a more diverse range of crops on farms and implementing precision farming techniques to reduce the use of fossil fuel-based fertilizers and pesticides. The framework also covers water stewardship and environmental stewardship.

We are also encouraging industry alignment on common frameworks and metrics for regenerative agriculture.

A harmonized approach

In 2023, Nestlé joined industry leaders, farmer associations and communities to explore a new harmonized and outcomes-based approach to regenerative agriculture.

Convened by the Sustainable Agriculture Initiative (SAI) Platform, Regenerating Together encompasses a holistic approach to farming, inspired by agroecological principles. It supports the three key agricultural resources – soil, water, and biodiversity – and aims to benefit farming communities.

Regenerative agriculture in action

Collaborating to implement regenerative agriculture techniques

Nestlé France is working with different stakeholders to source key ingredients from farms transitioning to regenerative agriculture. The consortium includes Earthworm Foundation, Kermap, Inrae and Agro-transfer and is helping to implement regenerative agriculture practices, such as cover crops, crop rotation and reduced soil tillage. The project aims to increase the organic matter in soils, which increases fertility and yields.

Farmers get behind dairy transition

The Nature por NINHO® certification program in Brazil reward farmers for adopting regenerative agriculture practices. The program’s 100+ farmers who have reached “expert” status are reporting improvements in soil health and biodiversity, and a positive impact on water resources.

Nestlé has launched two projects with Cargill and ETG | Beyond Beans to reduce and remove carbon emissions in our cocoa supply chains. The initiatives promote agroforestry, regenerative agriculture, and reforestation, aiming to plant over two million shade trees in Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire. These efforts, involving close collaboration with local communities, are expected to cut more than 500 000 metric tonnes of carbon over 20 years while enhancing biodiversity and supporting farmers.

Keeping farms cool

Alongside partners Krakow University of Agriculture, Growers Association, Agrosimex and Syngenta, we have been supporting Polish farmers to help restore soil health and quantify the carbon capture potential of their farms.

The project has involved planting cover crops on 220 hectares of farmland and the introduction of humic acids on a further 180 hectares. We then monitor data on soil health by looking at organic matter, pests and weather to inform future decisions and inputs.

The results from the soil samples and farm primary data are processed by Cool Farm Tool (CFT) and Cradle-to-Farmgate lifecycle assessments conducted by Krakow University of Agriculture. Initial reports have been encouraging – informing the design of regenerative agriculture practices to increase soil organic matter and the potential for carbon capture.