30: Making farming sexy again: How Climate Farmers Aims to Support Regenerative Farmers with Co-Founder Philipp Birker

SustainNOW Podcast - Exploring Climate Solutions with Innovators and Entrepreneurs

In this episode of SustainNOW, Philippe Birker, co-founder of Climate Farmers, takes us on a journey into the world of regenerative agriculture. Growing up in an agricultural town in Western Germany, Philippe has always been connected to farming, and now he’s dedicated to restoring its image and making it more sustainable. He shares his mission to make farming "sexy again" by highlighting the importance of regenerative practices that enhance soil health, increase biodiversity, and combat climate change.

Climate Farmers was founded with the aim of building the infrastructure needed to scale regenerative agriculture in Europe. Philippe explains the two key functions of the organization: the Regenerative Farming Academy, which connects a community of farmers to support the transition to regenerative practices, and CarbonCredit+, a program that allows farmers to earn carbon credits by sequestering carbon in their soil, which companies can purchase to meet sustainability goals.

Philippe discusses how regenerative agriculture not only benefits the environment but also provides long-term financial opportunities for farmers. He explains how carbon credits work, the future of farming, and what needs to change in Europe to truly scale sustainable practices. This episode is a must-listen for anyone interested in the future of agriculture and its critical role in solving the climate crisis.

Capíttulos

1. 30: Making farming sexy again: How Climate Farmers Aims to Support Regenerative Farmers with Co-Founder Philipp Birker (00:00:00)

2. What does it mean to "Make farmers sexy again?" (00:03:00)

3. What is your take on the current farming protests? (00:05:00)

4. Is regenerative agriculture bringing sexy back to farming (is this the future of farming)? (00:08:00)

5. What are the main benefits of regenerative agriculture? (00:11:45)

6. How do you define regenerative agriculture? (00:13:44)

7. What is the timeframe that this works in? (00:15:30)

8. What needs to change in the European context for regenerative agriculture to take root? (00:16:45)

9. What brought you to founding climate farmers? (00:19:00)

10. What brought you to climate farmers? (00:21:30)

11. How do you measure the carbon storing in soil? (00:24:00)

12. How can you secure the carbon in the soil? (00:25:30)

13. How do you avoid overpromising with carbon credits? (00:26:30)

14. How does this business model work? (00:27:30)

15. What else needs to change to make farming profitable again? (00:29:00)

16. How does the food-cost tradeoff balance out, what needs to happen? (00:31:30)

17. Is there a way out of our current climate problem? (00:33:30)

18. Since founding climate farmers, what has been the hardest realization you’ve faced? (00:34:30)

19. How does this compare to just bio/organic products? (00:36:00)

20. What are your 2030 goals for climate farmers? (00:37:00)

21. What is the biggest barrier? (00:38:00)

22. How can people support climate farmers? (00:39:00)

23. What books/podcast/resources do you recommend to learn more about regenerative agriculture? (00:40:00)

24. What is fire breathing and why are you the world record holder? 37:50 How can people contact you? (00:41:45)

25. What makes you confident that we will solve the climate crisis? (00:43:00)