Carbon farming is rapidly evolving as a key climate action tool, and agroforestry is now formally recognized in the EU Carbon Removals Certification Framework Regulation (2024/3012). However, ensuring credible, transparent, and practical methodologies for Monitoring, Reporting, and Verification (MRV) remains one of the biggest challenges for carbon markets and policy implementation.
To contribute to shaping this framework, ReForest played an active role in the European Carbon Farming Summit (March 4–6, 2025, Dublin), which served as a key platform for aligning science, policy, and practice, ensuring that carbon farming delivers real benefits to farmers, the environment, and society at large.
ReForest at the MRV workshop
Represented by Dr. Rico Hübner from DeFAF, ReForest participated in the workshop on MRV of agroforestry carbon farming schemes. The session built on the EURAF typology of agroforestry systems and examined how to quantify, implement, and sustain carbon removals within the broader framework of regenerative agriculture.
Dr. Rico Hübner’s presentation on evaluating soil and biomass carbon storage in agroforestry systems highlighted scientific methodologies for assessing carbon sequestration potential and emphasising the importance of precise monitoring approaches.The presentation reinforced a critical message of the summit: to maximize the climate benefits of agriculture, carbon monitoring methodologies must be standardized, scalable, and cost-effective.
The insights generated during the discussions will contribute to upcoming EURAF Policy Briefings on agroforestry and carbon farming, shaping the next phase of EU policy development.
Measuring Agroforestry’s Co-Benefits: Colin Tosh’s Poster Presentation
As part of the summit’s poster session, ReForest contributed an important perspective on the use of remote sensing and machine learning to improve MRV systems for agroforestry. Colin Tosh’s poster showcased machine learning models trained on multispectral satellite imagery, which allow for the automation of soil organic carbon and biodiversity mapping across European agroforestry farms.
This research work within ReForest project addresses one of the key economic and technical barriers in carbon farming: the high costs of MRV activities. The technology has been applied to ReForest Living Lab farms, where it offers a cost-effective, scalable solution for farmers, researchers, and policymakers seeking to assess agroforestry’s carbon benefits.
The poster also underscored the broader role of agroforestry in ecological regeneration. Beyond just carbon sequestration, the models help track biodiversity gains, an aspect often overlooked in carbon markets.
Throughout the summit, a recurring theme was the need for a systemic approach to carbon farming. As the event organisers from Project Credible summarised, carbon farming is not just about carbon — it is about transforming agriculture towards more regenerative, resilient, and sustainable practices. The social, environmental, and economic dimensions must all be considered, and agroforestry is uniquely positioned to bridge these aspects.
However, there was also recognition that significant gaps remain in the development of carbon farming policies and the success of carbon farming ultimately depends on the fact if farmers who steward the land are included.
ReForest remains committed to ensuring that agroforestry plays a central role in Europe’s carbon farming strategy and is devoted to integrated approaches that recognise the full value of agroforestry.
Download Dr. Rico Hübner’s presentation on Evaluating Soil and Biomas
Download Colin Tosh’s poster on Automating soil organic carbon and biodiversity prediction
Download Comparative carbon stock quantification in diverse production system.
Download Carbon Farming Summit abstract poster Albert M. Colom Bauza – UCPH.
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