Campbell Soup Company and Kind Snacks announced projects that would advance regenerative agriculture practices for key ingredients with financial support from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Campbell's received $3.4 million through USDA’s Regional Conservation Partnership Program to increase adoption of sustainable practices and reduce water consumption among tomato growers in California. Separately, Kind, a subsidiary of Mars Inc., said it will unlock more than $300,000 for regenerative agriculture in almonds through USDA's Partnership for Climate-Smart Commodities Program.
“As farmers face increasing challenges from climate change, it is important that we support further adoption of climate-smart agriculture practices that improve soil health and enhance resilience," Campbell’s Chief Sustainability Officer Stewart Lindsay said in a statement.
More major food companies are relying on the USDA and a collaborative network of nonprofits and suppliers as they make a herculean push to transform their supply chains in order to meet company sustainability goals. The Campbell's project will be implemented alongside partners including USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service and the American Farmland Trust.
“We salute the involvement of food companies that understand the importance of keeping these food ingredients sustainable and available for the future," Tom Stein, California Regional Director at American Farmland Trust, said in a statement.
Kind's project is part of Wolfe's Neck Center for Agriculture and the Environment's regenerative services match program. The snacking company will leverage the sustainable farming institution's expertise to provide growers with financial and technical incentives, as well as verification tools.
Kind said the partnership will help it take the first steps toward sourcing 100% of almonds from farms leveraging regenerative agriculture on a mass-balance basis by 2030. Last year, Kind partnered with its supplier Olam Food Ingredients, or ofi, to test regenerative practices and technologies on over 500 acres of land in California.
The snacking giant is working to add a second pilot farm outside of Bakersfield, California, that would double the acreage of the project and test the impact of regenerative practices in more water-stressed areas.
"It's through partnerships like these that we can all accelerate change to create a more sustainable and resilient agricultural future," Dave Herring, executive director of Wolfe's Neck Center, said in a statement.
