At our latest AgForeHub exchange, representatives from three food companies came together to discuss regenerative agriculture, one of the most talked-about concepts in sustainable food production today. The session was hosted by one of the food companies, which shared its experience from several ongoing initiatives aimed at improving soil health, biodiversity, and farm resilience.
One of the key takeaways from the discussion was that regenerative agriculture is still evolving. There is currently no single accepted definition, and organisations continue to debate whether it should be defined by agricultural practices, environmental outcomes, or a combination of both.
Barilla presented its perspective that regenerative agriculture goes beyond conserving natural resources and instead focuses on actively improving agricultural ecosystems. This shift from "doing less harm" towards creating positive environmental outcomes sparked an engaging discussion among participants.
The conversation quickly moved from definition to implementation. Participants explored practical challenges such as how regenerative practices can be measured, how outcomes differ between regions and soil types, and how farmers can be supported through the transition. Several attendees highlighted that local conditions matter, meaning that solutions must often be adapted to specific landscapes, crops, and farming systems.
A particularly interesting discussion focused on measurement. Barilla shared experiences from projects using satellite imagery and modelling to assess soil organic carbon, opening a broader conversation about how companies can track environmental improvements at scale. Participants also discussed the challenge of measuring biodiversity, recognising that biodiversity is multidimensional, and that assessments often focus on selected species groups or ecosystem components rather than "all biodiversity".
Barilla also presented work aimed at developing biodiversity-related KPIs and monitoring approaches that consider biodiversity above and below ground, as well as across individual fields, farms and wider landscapes.
For us, this meeting demonstrated the value of bringing companies together to share experiences openly. While organisations may be at different stages of their biodiversity and regenerative agriculture journeys, many face similar questions around measurement, implementation and farmer engagement. By learning from each other's successes and challenges, progress can be accelerated across the sector.
Now launched: Biodiversity Footprinting Guidance
Several discussions during the meeting highlighted the growing need for practical approaches to biodiversity assessment. To support organisations taking their first steps, CircHive have launched the Biodiversity Footprinting Guidance | CircHive. The guidance is designed to help organisations understand biodiversity impacts and dependencies, navigate existing methods and identify suitable approaches for their own context. The tool has been developed with practitioners in mind and aims to make biodiversity assessment more accessible and actionable.