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“Land and people for the future”. When talking about Axereal’s sustainable development strategy, Jean-François Loiseau, the co-operative’s chairman, likes to refer to the group’s “signature”. He sums it up thus: “The central goal of regenerative agriculture is to respect the earth and people. It is an ensemble of farming practices that tend towards carbon neutrality by respecting the environment while also making use of new technology. And it’s also about paying a great deal of attention to soil regeneration.”
In line with this thinking, several years ago Axereal Group committed to a productive, low-carbon, regenerative agriculture model. “We need to move towards an agriculture that is more mindful of the environment and measure the positive effects of it,” adds Pierre Toussaint, Agronomy, Transitions and Innovation Director at Axereal. This strategic direction is motivated by a pressing need: “Given the many changes and uncertainties, Axereal is here to help farmers as they evolve their methods to improve quality and yield,” explains Flavie Delattre, Axereal Group Administrator. The fact is, these days there are many uncertainties. Farms must adjust to an evolving climate that is having an ever greater impact (such as periods of intense drought), while also taking new regulations into consideration. “We have to be there for farmers so they can get ahead of these changes,” explains Mr Toussaint. “This will involve improving soil health in particular by, for instance, making plants more resistant to water stress due to too much or too little water. And this will also improve plant access to water during droughts.”
The direction Axereal is taking is also driven by the expectations of society and, by extension, of processors and manufacturers, who listen to their customers. “Purchasing patterns have been shifting for several years now,” adds Axereal’s Director of Agronomy, Transitions and Innovation. Consumers want more local products and more clarity about what’s in them and where they're from. They also want to see concrete measures rolled out to support the environment, like combating global warming and taking action to protect biodiversity.”
An ambitious path towards decarbonisation
Axereal has launched an ambitious strategy to tackle these multiple challenges. The first step is to formalise the path towards decarbonisation. To achieve this, the group’s agricultural cluster and Axiane, its milling business, have joined the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi), following in the footsteps of Boortmalt (Axereal’s malting business), which signed up to the SBTi in 2021. Axereal has set itself ambitious goals: reducing energy-related greenhouse gas emissions by 42% and upstream agriculture emissions (through raw materials purchases for instance) by 30% by 2030.
Various initiatives have been launched to ensure the success of this transition in the group's agricultural activities and associated channels. Training is, therefore, very important. The first priority is Axereal employees, particularly the technical sales executives who support farmers day to day. “Climate, soil and carbon modules have been created so that our teams can get to grips with the current changes,” explains Mr Toussaint. Farmers also benefit from skills transfers, especially through meetings and farm visits. This enables them to sign up to an innovative measure: “carbon clubs”, where discussions on agricultural levers and carbon-related topics take place. Those taking part also get the chance to test practices mentioned at the meetings on their farms.
CultivUp Régénératif: an initiative to engage farms in sustainable agriculture
In order to boost regenerative agriculture on farms, Axereal has also developed an innovative initiative: CultivUp Régénératif. Its purpose is to involve farmers and ensure farms can withstand climate change and continue to generate a profit. This initiative replaced CultivUp in June 2024, and is projected to involve 2,000 farmers by 2026, and 3,000 by 2030.
The initiative relies on a sustainable agriculture framework that enables farms to be productive while reducing their environmental impact. It includes a total of 74 criteria such as extending the crop rotation cycle, integrating legumes that add nitrogen to the soil, preserving biodiversity and protecting water resources. CultivUp Régénératif includes performance delivery requirements for some of these criteria. Also, farmers wanting to join undergo a carbon audit in order to “identify which available levers can reduce greenhouse gases on their farms,” adds Mr Toussaint.
This measure offers another advantage besides helping reduce a farm’s carbon impact: it makes farmers eligible for channel contracts. And it couldn’t be simpler: a single set of specifications is applied to the whole farm, for all crops. So, by undertaking to practice regenerative agriculture, farmers adopt methods that add value to their output and are in line with market expectations.
Farmers who join CultivUp Régénératif are also encouraged to roll out low-carbon programmes and apply for certification. Some 250 pioneer farms have already signed up. The work carried out on farms echoes the growth of low-carbon channels. This year, almost 200,000 tonnes of grains produced using low-carbon methods were marketed by the co-operative.
The Arpège Project: research to develop low-input crops
Axereal has carried out significant research and development work to support this change in practices, particularly at its Chaumoy experimental farm (Cher). The studies planned within the vast R&D project called Arpège are part of this new approach. Launched in 2024, it brings together many partners (FertiBerry Semences, Genesis, Axa Climate, Medinbio, Hommes et Territoires, Terres Inovia and UniLaSalle) along with the co-operative group. Its goal is to optimise the production potential and environmental benefits of introducing low-carbon, low-input crops (protein peas, soybeans, sorghum, lentils, buckwheat, etc.). Certified and financed by Bpifrance as part of the France 2030 investment plan, it will be rolled out over four years and will result in concrete solutions for extending rotations on farms practising regenerative agriculture.
Two priority research areas have been defined. Scientists will first look to remove the technical barriers that are hindering the development of these low-input crops and improve their productivity. Two issues being tackled are reducing water stress in the crops and fighting soil-borne diseases in peas. Work will also be carried out on the quality of harvested production and identifying good practices that help products meet consumer expectations.
The second research priority focuses on how low-input crops can benefit soil health. “An assessment of their fertility will be conducted,” explains Thomas Monville, Axereal’s Innovation and Agronomy Transitions Manager. “The results will be related back to the farming methods. They will enable us to understand how we can improve soil health by introducing these new crops into rotations.”
Intended to strengthen the agronomic potential of the crops (peas, sorghum, lentils, etc.) that have been studied, the Arpège programme also aims to make them more economically viable. The work carried out on soil health should be understood from this perspective: researchers want to highlight the “co-benefits” of these low-input plants. “We are going to research the benefits they bring to the farm as a whole,” Mr Monville explains. “For example, will growing peas enable me to limit costs during the next crop rotation?” Looking ahead, thanks to the studies carried out we will be able to provide scientific proof of the environmental benefits of introducing low-carbon crops, better support our members on these technical matters and promote regenerative agriculture channels to processors and consumers.
