A new report explores the economic and environmental benefits of biochar in agriculture. 

The report, called Biochar Use in Agriculture: The Economic and Environmental Benefits, was published by Wiltshire charcoal producer, Luke Breedon NSch 2023, and sponsored by Alan and Anne Beckett.

The report is available on the Nuffield Farming report library, with an accompanying video on the Nuffield Farming YouTube channel.

Mr Breedon will present his findings at the 2024 Nuffield Farming Conference in Belfast.

The report stems from Mr Breedon's travels to Belgium, Germany, Sweden, the United States, New Zealand, and Australia, where he sought to understand the slow adoption of biochar in agriculture.

His research found that biochar's anthropogenic use dates back two millennia, although significant research into its benefits for contemporary agriculture and other industries has only taken place in the last couple of decades.

Mr Breedon said: "Anthropogenic use of biochar can be dated back two millennia, however, only in the last couple of decades has significant research been undertaken to find out why, and whether the practice can bring benefits to modern day agriculture and other industries."

The report suggests that biochar production could account for the removal of 6 per cent of global emissions per year, according to the International Biochar Initiative.

However, the financial incentives for this have only recently emerged with the adoption of voluntary carbon markets.

Despite the promising benefits, Mr Breedon warns of the varying results from farm-scale trials, due to differences in feedstock, production parameters, and inoculation.

He said: "Not all biochar is created equal, and there are certain scenarios where it will have the greatest impact.

"Farmers and growers need to be increasingly aware of what it is they are using due to significant variations in feedstock, production parameters and inoculation as each could make or break a project."

Mr Breedon observes a growing trend of on-farm production due to the availability of on-farm or local feedstocks, which brings increased economic benefits through heat or energy generation, as well as the possibility of offsetting farm-based emissions and carbon trading.

However, he concludes that biochar should not be considered a 'silver bullet', but rather a nature-based tool that can deliver economic benefits in certain scenarios, and environmental benefits in almost every application.

The study also highlights that further research and publication of methods could help to inform farmers and those in the sector on the best practices when considering the use of biochar.