Soil health pioneers

Improved soil health requires new agricultural methods and is important in three ways:

1. safe food supply in a new climate
2. use of the arable land as a coal sink
3. protect biological diversity in arable land

The IPCC's 2018 report highlighted soil carbon storage as the cheapest method with the greatest potential to reduce carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere. Thus, interest in new business models that include carbon storage has increased in the food industry.

On a political level, soil health is at the core of both The European Green Deal and the UN's global goals for sustainable development. In 2020, the European Commission presented the report "Caring for soil is caring for life", where soil health is one of five focus areas to be prioritized in 2021–2027. Improved soil health in ploughland is thus of great importance to society, but it requires commitment, innovative thinking, risk-taking and learning from agricultural entrepreneurs. This project will support them in this important work.

The project is about supporting farmers, so-called "soil health entrepreneurs", who want to use new cultivation methods to improve soil health.
Soil health is defined as the long-term sustainability of ploughland, the ability to deliver ecosystem services and promote biological diversity both above and below ground. Better soil health contributes to increased food security, as the soil copes with both drought and heavy rainfall better, but it also contributes to increased carbon storage. The project is a combined development and research project.

The project is a collaborative project between three different departments at SLU:

• The Department of People and Society
• The Department of Soil and Environment
• The Department of Crop Production Ecology

But it also builds on collaboration between academics and practitioners. A central part of the project is the establishment and development of three Living Labs 5 farmers, where the research will take place through so-called On-Farm Research. Other companies, authorities and organizations will also be invited to webinars and workshops, organized via the web platform (Jordhälsohubben).

Reference group
To ensure the knowledge platform's long-term survival, the project has established a reference group with key people in the industry. The reference group consists of representatives from Greppa Näringen/Jordbruksverket, LRF and KSLA.