The challenge

Financial incentives for farmers to use good soil management techniques are limited. Soil stewardship practices involve managing and reconfiguring production processes to maintain and increase soil performance, health and/or productivity. Practices include, but are not limited to, reducing tillage, rotating crops, maintaining groundcover and adding organic matter.

Consumer demand for food produced using soil stewardship practices is one opportunity for farmers to realise a financial benefit. However, there is a lack of understanding about consumers’ willingness to pay, their knowledge of soil, and communication strategies that might motivate consumers to pay for food produced with improved soil stewardship practices.

There is also a need to understand the opportunities and barriers to rewarding farmers for good soil stewardship across the value chain, including in food retail and manufacturing organisations.

Our research

Led by Professor Mark Morrison (Charles Sturt University), this project (1.1.003) sought to understand if and how farmers could be rewarded for good soil stewardship practices. The research used a mixed methods and iterative approach:

  • Consumer focus groups
  • Communication materials
  • Stakeholder interviews
  • Literature review
  • Consumer survey

Key points

  • 37% of consumers surveyed said they are potentially willing to pay more for food produced using soil stewardship practices. Willingness to pay increases if consumers are educated about soil stewardship practices.
  • Confusion about the meaning of soil stewardship is hindering the activation of the consumer market for soil stewardship.
  • The value chain is reluctant to provide financial incentives to farmers for soil stewardship practices, though there is willingness to support practice change in other ways.
  • A small market for food produced with soil stewardship practices is emerging, however, most supply chain members believe that the majority of consumers are not willing to pay more for products made using soil stewardship practices. This does not align with the project’s research findings on consumer willingness to pay.
  • There is a need to better understand the cost for farmers to transition to and use soil stewardship practices.

Find out more

Read our research findings fact sheet to learn more.