Monsanto announced that it’s on track to reach its goal of becoming carbon neutral by 2021. The company expects to meet the commitment it first made in December of 2015.
Operational improvements have already reduced Monsanto’s carbon footprint by more than 200,000 metric tons. That’s a reduction about equal to burning 200,000 fewer tons of coal. The rate of reduction is expected to increase over the next several years.
Hugh Grant, Monsanto chair and CEO says, “We’ve made reductions in our own carbon footprint and we’d like to lead by example. We’re showing the enormous potential that modern agriculture has to reduce the industry’s global carbon footprint.”
Monsanto is focusing on three main areas in its efforts to achieve carbon neutrality. Those areas are internal operations, which includes seed production, as well as breakthrough products and joint initiatives with farmers and other global partners.
Monsanto has already demonstrated that certain modern ag practices can reduce emissions and enable crops to be grown in a way that absorbs and stores greenhouse gases in the soil.
From the National Association of Farm Broadcasting News Service.