At this year’s AgriFood Forum ’25, our team stepped into one of the most urgent conversations shaping the future of food systems and land use: the evolving role of carbon credits in agriculture and forestry. As the transition toward climate-smart practices accelerates across Europe, the question is no longer if land-based carbon markets will influence agriculture and forestry, but how we prepare ourselves to meaningfully participate in them. This is the question our panel and workshop set out to explore.
During the Forum, we led the panel “Carbon Credits in Agriculture and Forestry: From Brussels to Lithuanian Fields”and followed it with an interactive, hands-on workshop. The combination attracted a diverse audience: farmers, foresters, agribusiness leaders, NGOs, certification specialists, academics, and public-sector representatives — each with a unique stake in how carbon markets evolve.
The goal was simple: bring people together to translate EU-level policy discussions into practical, on-the-ground perspectives. The interactive workshop created space for honest dialogue about what carbon credits mean for Lithuania’s landowners and businesses — not in theory, but in day-to-day practice. Participants worked through questions such as:
- How can agricultural and forestry practices be measured as verifiable climate services?
- What does it take for a soil or forest management improvement to qualify for a carbon credit?
- Which certification schemes are trusted, and what do they require?
- How ready are companies to buy land-based credits, and what are they looking for?
What emerged was a shared realisation: carbon credits are not a future vision — they are already reshaping supply chains, investment decisions, and land-use strategies across Europe. Lithuania has a strategic opportunity to position itself well, but only with coordinated action.
The conversations at AgriFood Forum ’25 made one thing clear: Lithuania has a strong foundation for becoming a frontrunner in climate-smart agriculture and forestry. With its scientific expertise, digital readiness, and increasingly engaged landowners, the country is well-positioned to shape credible, transparent, and competitive carbon market solutions.
But success requires coordinated effort — across sectors, ministries, science institutions, and communities. The Forum discussions were an important step in building this shared understanding.
Carbon credits are often discussed as a technical topic, full of terminology and requirements. But at their core, they are about how we value land, how we support the people who manage it, and how we build systems that reward climate-positive action.
AgriFood Forum ’25 showed that Lithuania is ready to be part of this conversation — not as a follower, but as a contributor and leader.