Companies develop method to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in integrated pest management

Promip, a biological pesticide company, and Delta CO2, a consultancy focused on environmental sustainability indicators, announce an unprecedented method in agribusiness, to enable a potential reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and also increase the so-called 'carbon sequestration'. Based in Piracicaba, São Paulo, the companies developed a system that, once installed in cultivated areas, as indicated by studies carried out in the interior of the state, potentially reduces greenhouse gas emissions in the proportion of 3,5 thousand kg per hectare of CO2 equivalent.

According to Promip's CEO, Marcelo Poletti, the method is applicable to the practice of IPM or integrated pest management. IPM, he explains, combines the use of microbiological (viruses, bacteria and fungi), macrobiological (mites, insects and nematodes) and agrochemicals. Initially, adds the executive, the companies' research focused on the cultivation of peppers, a vegetable almost always associated with agrochemical residues.

“The expectation is that, after further studies, the system will be extended to other FV crops – fruits, vegetables and greens – and reach grains”, says Poletti. One of the references in the market for biological matrix inputs for crop protection, the company was born in the Esalqtec incubator (Esalq/USP) in 2016. Today, it has one of the most modern biofactories in the country, with almost 60 thousand m² and distributes a broad portfolio own bioinputs.

Poletti highlights that the tool for measuring CO2 emissions is integrated into the MIP Experience program, a platform coordinated by Promip that brings together several companies and favors the association of integrated pest management with other sustainable practices in food production. “Measuring and controlling emissions places MIP Experience at an advanced level of environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG)”, he states.

Delta CO2, also created at Esalqtec, was created in 2008 by agronomist Guilherme Cerri. Its research & development area is coordinated by consultant Carlos Eduardo Cerri. The company provides services to dozens of medium and large agricultural companies, such as ADM, AgroCP, AngloAmerican, Aprosoja, BASF, Bayer, Bourbon, CacauShow, Cutrale, FS Bioenergia, ICL, Illy, LCD, Mosaic, Nestlé, Pepsico, Raízen, Shell, Solvay, Suzano, Superbac and Tereos.

According to Guilherme Cerri, Delta CO2 works with the objective of quantifying indicators of environmental sustainability, greenhouse gas emissions, carbon sequestration, soil quality, water use and quality. “We look for personalized solutions, in accordance with existing standards or directives in Brazil and abroad.” This portfolio also includes laboratory analyses, studies on soil biodiversity, carbon footprint and biodegradability of materials.

Disruptive equipment

The system that unites the companies in the partnership works anchored in devices used by Delta CO2, called 'automatic cameras'. Installed on the farm, the equipment is remotely controlled and locally measures the proportion of the three gases that generate the greenhouse effect: carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O). With the indicators at hand, explains Carlos Eduardo Cerri, Delta CO2 puts into practice strategies that ‘sequester’ carbon in plants and soil, mainly via photosynthesis and decomposition.

“Adopted on a large scale in FLV crops, and later in grain crops, this method could insert thousands of small and medium-sized Brazilian farmers into the carbon credit market”, concludes Marcelo Poletti, from Promip.

Globally, carbon emissions from agriculture have grown by 17% in the last 30 years. Brazil is today the 3rd largest emitter of this gas in the world, behind China and India, according to a UN report at the end of 2021. In the country, agriculture is the second sector that emits the most, with almost 70% of the total coming from livestock, according to data from the Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Removals Estimation System (SEEG).