What is Regenerative Agriculture? Farming to Reverse Climate Change

Regenerative Agriculture is:

↟ A holistic approach to land management

↟ Reversing climate change by sequestering carbon

↟ Focuses on minimal soil disturbances

↟ Focuses on the benefits of perennial plants and trees

↟ Rotates crops to emphasize plant diversity

↟ Emphasizes cover crops

↟ Implements the use of compost

↟ Is all about the SOIL

 Regenerative agriculture as a solution to global warming:

Ever since we started pulling carbon out of fossil fuels for energy, and inappropriately managing soil through industrial agriculture we have seen the balance of carbon disrupted. To fuel our daily activities as a globalized world , we have been moving TONS of carbon out of the soil and fossil fuels and into the atmosphere and the oceans - as in 880,000,000,000 giga tons (1)!

This excess of carbon dioxide is essentially leading to increased temperatures on our planet. 

Eric Toensmeier paints a clear picture in his book, The Carbon Farming Solution:

“What’s the big deal with a couple of degrees warmer? It’s actually a very big deal. At the coldest part of the last ice age, the planet was only 6°C colder than today. The last time it was 6°C warmer was 55 million years ago - when there were rainforests in Greenland. It was also 6°C warmer than today during the great Permian extinctions 251 million years ago.”

Regenerative agriculture focuses on regenerating healthy soil. These healthier soils can literally sequester carbon from the atmosphere, through the concept known as carbon farming (2). 

↠ Check out Kiss The Ground's 3 minute video, The Soil Story, for a fun and clear explanation of our planet's carbon imbalance. 

Regenerative agriculture as a solution to healthier food systems:

Soil health and diversity are directly related to our own health. Healthier soils will have richer stores of nutrients that our crops can then absorb and pass on to us. Our food truly can be our medicine when grown in healthy, rich soils (3). A diet that focuses on perennial plants will benefit both people and planet. Check out our free seasonal cookbook for perennial recipes. 

Regenerative Agriculture as a solution to water management:

Through enhanced soil structure, regenerative agriculture emphasizes cleaner water supplies and promotes a moderate use of water in a few ways:

↟ Enhanced soil structure can store more water

↟ Larger perennial crops provide more shade and minimize water loss due to evaporation

↟ Healthy soils, with a natural check and balance against unwanted pests, reduces the need for toxic pesticides that leach into water supplies

Regenerative Agriculture as a solution to safer working conditions for farmers:

Farmers are the backbone of our food system and our food system is the backbone of civilization. Regenerative agriculture supports:

↟ Healthier working conditions = Regenerative agriculture does not require the use of toxic chemicals to fertilize the soil nor to keep pests in check.

↟ More efficient use of labor = By focusing on long-living and stable perennial crops, there is a 45% drop of energy usage

↟ Higher wages = Perennial crops from regenerative farms yield 40% higher in times of drought, and have 3-6 times greater profit (4). This leads to increased happiness & health for farm workers. 

Regenerative Agriculture’s Role In Skin Care

If you are anything like us, climate change stresses you out. Stress can show up in our lives through moodiness, poor sleep habits, anxiety, and guess what, through our skin. So we figure, by whole-heartedly supporting regenerative agriculture principles, and through our Forest To Face® initiative, we can offer a stress-free solution to both climate change and our complexion. 

The cosmetic industry is generally a huge contributor to climate change. Anato is here to be a solution to climate change. Our skin care ingredients come from trees and perennial plants. These trees and perennial plants come from farms that implement regenerative agriculture practices. Their trees and perennial crops are sequestering carbon, building soil diversity, cleaning our water systems, and promoting ecological diversity (5). So that means our skin care products are doing those things too.

When you think of a forest, you think of rich biodiversity, amongst plants and animals. You can feel the fresh, moist air and see endless dimensions of different shades and shapes of greenery. When you think of a farm, what image comes to mind? Forest To Face brings regenerative agriculture into regenerative skin care. The prosperity of the forest is being offered to your skin. Will you accept?

 How can you bring regenerative agriculture into your daily life? 

⚘ Use Anato skin care. One of the few brands out there that genuinely supports and promotes regenerative agriculture.

⚘ Garden! Focus on building soil health and plant and microorganism diversity.

⚘ Educate yourself with platforms like Kiss The Ground.

⚘ Cook with more perennial plants. Download our free seasonal cookbook for recipes.

(1) Tickell, J. (2017). Kiss the Ground: How the food you eat can reverse climate change, heal your body & ultimately save our world. Simon and Schuster.

(2) Toensmeier, E. (2016). The carbon farming solution: a global toolkit of perennial crops and regenerative agriculture practices for climate change mitigation and food security. Chelsea Green Publishing.

(3) Pollan, M. (2008). Farmer in chief. New York Times Magazine, 12.

(4) Moyer, J. (2013). Perspective on Rodale Institute's Farming Systems Trial. Crop Management, 12(1).

(5) Delgado-Baquerizo, M., Bardgett, R. D., Vitousek, P. M., Maestre, F. T., Williams, M. A., Eldridge, D. J., ... & Sala, O. E. (2019). Changes in belowground biodiversity during ecosystem development. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 116(14), 6891-6896.