As we continue progressing to meet our sustainability goals outlined in our 2030 All Life sustainability plan, Ingredion Brazil joined HEINEKEN's Global Low Carbon Farming Program aimed at reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by working with corn and barley farmers to implement sustainable farming practices. One hundred twenty-eight farmers from eight countries participated in the program, with six from Ingredion.

Once growers were enrolled in the program, our sustainability team worked with them to identify new farming practices to reduce GHG emissions in their operations. To help offset the cost of implementing new practices, HEINEKEN contributed funds to aid the growers in executing these changes. At the end of the first year, before and after emissions data was measured to assess the viability of the adopted changes. They found that the program resulted in a 25 percent reduction of emissions in scope and increased the amount of carbon captured in the soil by 40 percent. The results included improved soil health, water infiltration, and soil biodiversity preservation.

"Working on this project with HEINEKEN was exciting," said Jose Eduardo Camargo, agriculture specialist. "It was great to see HEINEKEN incentivizing growers to choose practices on their farms targeting GHG reductions as our growers are great stewards of their land and know what can be most effective in their operations."

The next step in the program is to identify which practices had the most positive results and to scale up the adoption of those practices with growers in their supply chains. The program aims to be fully staffed with 500 farmers in 15 countries by the end of 2025. HEINEKEN released a short video detailing the project's first-year results.