Agreena has secured a seven-year agreement with one of the world’s largest commodity trading houses for the purchase of 4.45 million tonnes of carbon credits generated through a regenerative agriculture project in northern Kazakhstan, giving the agricultural carbon market one of its largest publicly communicated long-term commitments to date. The agreement is designed to support farmers as they transition from conventional farming practices to regenerative agriculture, while creating a long-term commercial framework for soil carbon removal. Agreena said the project is targeting 1.6 million hectares under regenerative management by 2028.
The scale and duration of the deal are significant for an agricultural carbon market that has increasingly been characterised by spot transactions. Agreena said corporate buyers seeking carbon volumes at scale are increasingly looking beyond immediate purchases and contracting several years ahead of credit issuance. That shift puts greater emphasis on the ability of carbon platforms to guarantee future supply while giving farmers greater visibility over the revenues that can support changes in farming practices.
“This is a defining moment for Agreena and for the carbon market, as soil carbon cements its role at scale,” said Frederik Aagaard, Chief Commercial Officer, Agreena. “A seven-year agreement provides infrastructure, enabling farmers in Kazakhstan to change how they farm with an economic safety net.” Aagaard said the scale of the buyer commitment also reflects confidence in the platform’s ability to deliver future supply, supported by the science underpinning the programme, digital measurement, reporting and verification technology and the commercial infrastructure connecting farmers with buyers.
Turning Carbon Finance Into Farm Investment
The Kazakhstan project is located in the country’s northern grain belt, a major agricultural region where soils are considered among the most carbon-rich in Central Asia. Agreena said those soils have nevertheless experienced degradation under conventional agricultural practices. The carbon agreement is intended to direct revenue towards farmers adopting regenerative practices, with the broader objective of rebuilding soil health, reducing the loss of soil organic carbon and improving the resilience of agricultural land.
The model reflects a broader evolution in agricultural carbon markets. Rather than treating carbon credits as an isolated environmental commodity, projects are increasingly being positioned around the economics of farm management, where carbon revenue can help offset the cost and risk of changing established production systems. Among the practices expected to be supported are reduced soil disturbance, retention of crop residues and the introduction of off-season cover crops. Agreena said these measures can deliver benefits extending beyond carbon, including improved soil structure and greater resilience to weather stress.
Fuel Savings Add To The Farm Economics
For farmers, the economics of regenerative agriculture are not limited to potential carbon revenue. Reduced tillage can also lower fuel consumption and operating costs. Agreena estimates that reducing tillage can cut diesel use by 40 to 60 litres per hectare. In a large grain-producing region, the potential reduction in fuel consumption can become a material component of farm economics alongside carbon income.
Water management is another critical factor in northern Kazakhstan. The region receives approximately 300 to 450 millimetres of rainfall annually, making the ability of soils to retain moisture particularly important. Agreena said retaining crop residues can help preserve soil moisture and improve farmland’s ability to withstand periods of limited rainfall. Ending stubble burning could also reduce particulate matter and nitrogen oxide pollution in surrounding rural communities.
The project therefore links carbon finance with a broader set of agricultural outcomes: lower fuel consumption, improved moisture retention, reduced pollution and potentially stronger farm resilience.
Carbon Credits With A Biodiversity Dividend
The regenerative practices supported by the project are also expected to create biodiversity benefits. Reduced soil disturbance and off-season cover crops can provide additional habitat and improve conditions across agricultural landscapes. Agreena said the surrounding grasslands are used by endangered species, making biodiversity an important consideration alongside the project’s carbon objectives.
For the carbon market, that broader impact could become increasingly important as buyers look more closely at the environmental outcomes associated with credits rather than focusing solely on the volume of carbon represented. “Soil carbon credits are unique in the value they provide beyond the measurable tonnes of carbon reduced and removed,” Aagaard said. “Co-benefits, including greater biodiversity, improved soil health, and resilience against both drought and flood, are a direct result of protecting soil structure through the pillars of regenerative agriculture.”
Long-Term Contracts Could Reshape Agricultural Carbon
Agreena’s Kazakhstan agreement comes as the agricultural carbon market moves towards greater scale and longer-term commercial commitments. The seven-year structure gives the project greater visibility over future demand while giving farmers a clearer economic horizon for adopting regenerative practices. For buyers, long-term agreements can provide greater certainty over future carbon supply at a time when demand for high-volume credits is growing.
The challenge is execution. Soil carbon projects depend on farmers changing practices across large areas, while carbon outcomes must be measured and verified over time. That makes technology, scientific methodology and farmer participation central to the commercial viability of such projects.
Founded in 2018 and headquartered in Copenhagen, Agreena provides soil carbon and regenerative agriculture solutions, working with farmers adopting regenerative practices and connecting them with businesses seeking to finance associated climate outcomes. With its Kazakhstan project targeting 1.6 million hectares by 2028, the company is betting that agricultural carbon can become more than a source of credits. The larger proposition is that carbon finance can help fund changes in how farms operate—turning soil health, climate resilience and environmental outcomes into part of the economic equation for agriculture.
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