ADM, FBN partner to expand its farm business management platform

Photo © iStockphoto.com/shotbydave

ADM (Chicago) and FBN (Farmers Business Network; San Carlos) signed an agreement to expand availability of FBN’s digital farm business management platform, Gradable, to ADM’s network of farmers across North America. This will give 55,000 growers access to a comprehensive digital solution to manage their businesses and measure sustainable production data.

Using the Gradable platform, farmers can identify areas where they can increase profitability, including measuring, reporting and verification capabilities that will allow them to participate in regenerative agriculture programs and new markets for low-carbon grain. They can also:

• Access a full digital view of their business, with eventual capability to manage contracts, settlements, and scale tickets in a single location
• Receive agronomic guidance and education on maximizing environmental market outcomes
• Verify and maintain records on regenerative farming practices, such as cover cropping, reduced tillage, and nutrient management
• Access operating lines of capital with potential discounts for regenerative practice adoption

“ADM is leading in the decarbonization of our industry, meeting demand for food, beverages, and consumer products that are produced sustainably from seed to store shelf,” said Greg Morris, president of ADM’s Ag services and oilseeds business, in a press release. “Last year, we committed to reducing our Scope 3 emissions 25% by 2035. Just last May, we committed $20 million in incentives for farmers who use cover crops to improve soil health, prevent runoff, and reduce carbon emissions. Now, we’re taking yet another important step by partnering with FBN to expand our array of digital tools and offer our farmer partners a leading-edge platform to measure and verify regenerative agriculture practices and help manage their businesses. We’re excited to work with more farmers to find new opportunities for them to benefit from the production of differentiated, sustainably produced crops.”

Gradable will also enableincreased farmer participation in new sustainability markets by allowing them to seamlessly collect and calculate verifiable production data, empowering them to monetize these downstream benefits in the market.

“FBN’s Gradable is not only the major digital innovation farmers need to identify opportunities to drive profitability, but it is also the carbon accounting system upon which a low-carbon ag economy can be built, with the potential to decarbonize the food and fuel supply chains on a gigaton scale,” said FBN CEO Amol Deshpande in a press release. “Combining ADM’s scale and expertise and FBN’s digital technology with the ability to efficiently, accurately, and consistently calculate and verify regenerative farm practices is powerful and promises to serve as a catalyst for the development of premium markets that reward farmers for sustainable production. This level of transparency is then transferred down the line to consumers, supporting demand for sustainable consumption.”