3Degrees, a global leader in climate solutions and a certified B Corporation, has announced the launch of the Low Carbon Fertilizer Alliance, a groundbreaking initiative aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions across agricultural supply chains. Carbon Fertilizer This alliance seeks to address the pressing challenge of decarbonizing fertilizer production, an industry that currently emits more carbon dioxide equivalent (CO₂e) than the aviation and shipping sectors combined.
By bringing together key stakeholders in the food, beverage, and apparel industries, the Alliance aims to drive scalable and sustainable solutions to mitigate Low Carbon Fertilizer-related emissions. The initiative is backed by founding member Mars, Inc., alongside three additional Fortune 200 food companies, with CF Industries—the largest nitrogen fertilizer producer in North America—joining as the founding manufacturing member.
The Urgency of Fertilizer Decarbonization
The global agricultural sector plays a pivotal role in both feeding the world and combating climate change. Low Carbon Fertilizer production alone is responsible for approximately 2.6 gigatonnes of CO₂e emissions annually. This significant carbon footprint underscores the need for immediate action to implement sustainable manufacturing practices.
Low Carbon Fertilizer, particularly nitrogen-based varieties like urea ammonium nitrate (UAN), are essential for maintaining soil fertility and maximizing crop yields. However, their production is energy-intensive and often relies on fossil fuels, particularly natural gas, which contributes significantly to global greenhouse gas emissions. While existing technologies can drastically cut emissions from fertilizer manufacturing, companies often encounter financial and logistical hurdles in adopting these lower-carbon alternatives.
Recognizing these challenges, the Low Carbon Fertilizer Alliance is designed to offer an industry-wide collaborative platform that provides funding and strategic support to accelerate decarbonization efforts within the agricultural value chain.
The Alliance operates under the management of 3Degrees, leveraging its extensive expertise in greenhouse gas strategy and agricultural emissions reduction. It facilitates collective action among manufacturers, agricultural businesses, and consumer brands, helping them implement more sustainable fertilizer production and sourcing practices.
One of the Alliance’s key functions is securing funding for emissions reduction projects within the agriculture industry. This financial backing enables manufacturers to invest in low-carbon technologies, thereby making sustainable fertilizer production more accessible and cost-effective.
Key Initiative: CF Industries’ Emissions Abatement Project
A major early success of the Alliance is CF Industries’ commitment to complete a nitric acid plant emissions abatement project at its Verdigris, Oklahoma manufacturing facility. Nitric acid is a crucial raw material in the production of UAN, which is widely used in the U.S. agricultural sector.
Set to be completed by 2025, this emissions abatement project is expected to cut greenhouse gas emissions by approximately 600,000 metric tons of CO₂e annually. To put this into perspective, this reduction is equivalent to removing over 130,000 passenger vehicles from the road each year.
CF Industries’ participation as the founding manufacturing member signifies a crucial step in aligning industry leaders toward a shared vision of decarbonization. Their commitment sets a precedent for other fertilizer producers to follow suit, demonstrating the feasibility and benefits of adopting more sustainable production practices.
The Importance of Collective Action
John Bourne, Senior Director of Agriculture at 3Degrees, emphasized the necessity of industry-wide collaboration to tackle upstream emissions effectively.
“Fertilizer manufacturing emissions represent over 20% of the emissions footprint of many agricultural commodities. However, these emissions occur far upstream in the supply chain, making it challenging for any single company to finance and claim reductions on its own. This is why collective action is essential,” Bourne stated.
Through a collaborative approach, the Alliance ensures that all participating companies can integrate these emissions reductions into their sustainability goals. By pooling resources and aligning strategies, industry leaders can drive meaningful change more efficiently than if they were to act in isolation.
Ensuring Credibility Through Reporting and Claims Guidance
In response to growing pressure for transparent and credible reporting of sustainability efforts, the Alliance’s technical working group has developed the Reporting and Claims Guidance V1.0. This framework provides companies with standardized methodologies toLow Carbon Fertilizer integrate the impact of Alliance-supported interventions into their sustainability strategies and corporate reporting.
The guidance ensures that emissions reductions achieved through the Alliance’s initiatives are accurately accounted for and align with industry best practices. This transparency is crucial for maintaining credibility and fostering trust among stakeholders, investors, and consumers who are increasingly scrutinizing corporate sustainability claims.
Autumn Fox, Global Sustainability Director at Mars, Inc., expressed strong support for the initiative, stating, “We appreciate the approach to accelerating decarbonization across the Low Carbon Fertilizerproduction system. By working together, we ensure that our accounting for upstream emission reductions is credible and aligned with our peers, while moving the needle on decarbonizing the inputs that farmers rely on.”
Expanding Membership and Industry Participation
Membership in the Low Carbon Fertilizer Alliance is open to companies that manufacture, trade, or sell products derived from agricultural goods produced in North America. This includes businesses in the food, beverage, and apparel industries—sectors that depend heavily on sustainable agricultural supply chains.
As more companies join the Alliance, its collective influence will grow, enabling broader adoption of low-carbon technologies and increasing the impact of emissions reduction projects. The initiative aims to create a ripple effect across the industry, encouraging further investment in sustainable practices and fostering innovation in fertilizer production.
