Soil Capital says it has paid European farmers £12.4 million for regenerative results as its program grows to 1,100 farmers

July 2025 — Soil Capital said on July 15, 2025 that its payments to farmers for regenerative practices had reached £12.4 million, as the program across the UK, France and Belgium grew from 800 to 1,100 farmers. Here's what happened, what it cost, and what went wrong.

Cost and outcome (as of July 15, 2025)

Outcome: £12.4 million paid to farmers, which Carbon Pulse reported as the total since 2021. (Soil Capital, July 15, 2025, Carbon Pulse, July 15, 2025)
Recent payments: £4.6 million for harvest 2023, up from £3.2 million for 2022; £3.6 million so far for harvest 2024. (Soil Capital, July 15, 2025)
Claimed impact: 330,000 t CO₂e of climate benefits in 2024, up 38%. (Soil Capital, July 15, 2025)
Cost to buyers: credit prices not disclosed.

The numbers

Soil Capital said participating farmers rose from 800 to 1,100 in 2024, lifting the program's area to 322,000 hectares, up 34%. Climate benefits from those practices reached 330,000 tonnes of CO₂e, up 38% on the year before. (Soil Capital, July 15, 2025)

Payments each year are based on the previous harvest's environmental impact. Farmers were paid £4.6 million in the past 12 months for harvest 2023, up from £3.2 million for the 2022 harvest. The first payments for harvest 2024 already total £3.6 million, three months into the cycle. Soil Capital pays every four months. (Soil Capital, July 15, 2025)

By our arithmetic from the release, the 2022, 2023 and 2024 harvest payments add up to £11.4 million, which leaves about £1 million for earlier harvests within the £12.4 million total. (Soil Capital, July 15, 2025)

Carbon Pulse reported that the practices have cut a total of 720,000 tonnes of CO₂ since 2021, the firm said. (Carbon Pulse, July 15, 2025)

Who's buying

CEO Chuck de Liedekerke said the company is growing long-term partnerships with the Mars group, malt maker Boortmalt and grain trader Cefetra, and has launched a "Beyond Carbon" framework to recognize outcomes from soil health to biodiversity. (Soil Capital, July 15, 2025)

Soil Capital says its methodology is aligned with corporate targets for cutting Scope 3 emissions, connecting businesses that want more resilient supply chains with farmers. (Soil Capital, July 15, 2025)

The company says its program has run since 2019, and that Soil Capital was founded in 2013. (Soil Capital, July 15, 2025)

"The voluntary carbon market may be maturing, but so is the urgency for food system renewal," de Liedekerke said. He added that success "will demand bold action from governments, continued investment from the agri-food sector, and a shared commitment to a farmer-first approach." (Soil Capital, July 15, 2025)

A farmer's view

David Fuller-Shapcott, who farms at Sweethope in the Scottish Borders, said he has worked toward "a lower input, more nature friendly way of arable farming" for almost a decade, and that his customers are also looking for sustainability improvements. (Soil Capital, July 15, 2025)

"It makes sense to me that we should be financially recognised for doing our bit towards reducing emissions," he said. (Soil Capital, July 15, 2025)

What went wrong

Slower buying. Soil Capital said sales of its units from harvests 2023 and 2024 were ongoing, but economic uncertainty, geopolitical tensions and changing sustainability rules had slowed corporate decision-making on voluntary carbon investment. (Soil Capital, July 15, 2025)
Unsold credits, paid farmers. The release doesn't say how much of the 2023 and 2024 output has been sold, or at what price, so it's unclear how payments are funded.
Self-reported impact. The tonnage figures come from Soil Capital's own methodology; the release names no registry or verifier.
What we don't know yet: credit prices, the volume unsold, and who verifies the 330,000 tonnes.

Our follow-up question for Soil Capital

How much of the harvest 2023 and 2024 output is still unsold, and who verifies the tonnage?

Sources

Soil Capital, “Soil Capital announces fourth farmer payment round as the impact of its regenerative agriculture programme continues to scale, despite a challenging market context,” July 15, 2025. soilcapital.com
Carbon Pulse, “Soil carbon scheme issues £12.4 mln to farmers, saves 720k tonnes of CO2,” July 15, 2025 (paywalled; summary only). carbon-pulse.com

Disclosure: [not in copy] Editor placeholder