Conference Day Two

Thursday, November 14

8:00 am Registration & Coffee

9:00 am Chair’s Opening Remarks

  • Greg Goodwin Director - Precision Conservation Management, Illinois Corn Growers Association

Navigating Evolving Regulations & Standards

9:15 am Discussion: A Comprehensive Approach to Managing Scope 3 Emissions

  • Sabrina Kerin Manager, Net Zero Climate Services, Winrock International
  • Bridget Barnes Sustainability & Climate Expert, North America, Nestlé

Synopsis

  • In this panel session discuss lessons learned in managing Scope 3 emissions and how they are addressing emissions via particular investments in actions with their Tier 1 suppliers or investments in market-based measures.
  • Validation of Scope 3 interventions non-intervention Scope 3 activity and emissions data
  • Top trends and innovations in inventory accounting procedures, including when and how to integrate interventions into your Scope 3 emissions footprint, and when you should not integrate
  • Effective internal data quality and assurance policies 
  • Adapting to shifting methodologies, evolving standards and policy pressures with agile, future-proof systems
  • Explore how transparency enables better procurement decisions, market differentiation, and access to incentive structures and low-carbon finance

10:15 am Bridging the Gaps & Building Capacity in the Value Chain for Increased Resiliency Among all Stakeholders

  • Troy Daniell Director, US Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Research Service (ARS)

Synopsis

  • The need for clear, unambiguous guidance and well-defined frameworks (sideboards)
  • Filling the needs for technical assistance to help stakeholders navigate complex sustainability and supply chain decisions
  • Meeting the challenges for training and retention of technical talent
  • Mentoring and coaching producers, practitioners and supply chain actors (buyers, processors, retailers)
  • Building systems of trusted advisors to keep value chains connected and informed
  • The need for funding models that support both producers and technical service providers
  • How innovative financing solutions (cost share, incentives, grants) can unlock capacity

11:15 am Morning Refreshments & Networking

11:45 am Life Cycle Modeling & Chain of Custody Considerations for Biofuels Policies

  • Steffen Mueller Principal Economist, Bioenergy & Transportation Emissions Research Group, University of Illinois Chicago

Synopsis

  •  Integration of chain of custody models with global biofuels policies
  • Quantification of emissions credits for conservation-smart agricultural practices using life cycle modeling
  • Book & claim vs. mass balance chain of custody for agricultural supply chains

12:15 pm Discussion: Future-Proofing Carbon Strategies – Thriving Amid Uncertainty & Evolving Standards

  • Steffen Mueller Principal Economist, Bioenergy & Transportation Emissions Research Group, University of Illinois Chicago
  • Troy Daniell Director, US Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Research Service (ARS)
  • Josiah McClellan Director - Sustainability, ALDI

Synopsis

  • Frameworks to assess and mitigate compliance risk in an evolving carbon accounting landscape
  • Tools and system design best practices to maintain data credibility while awaiting policy and standard changes
  • Strategies for proactive communication and stakeholder alignment that build resilience and trust
  • Modelling risk exposure and contingency planning under various GHGP and SBTi scenarios
  • Strategies to maintain progress toward near-term science-based targets while awaiting final guidance
  • What early movers are doing now to maintain regulatory optionality and avoid last-minute compliance costs
  • Criteria to pick protocol utilized and what consistency exists here and what is the potential to change protocol

12:45 pm Lunch & Networking

Accounting Case Studies Across the Value Chain to Support Emissions Reporting

1:45 pm Removing Barriers to Accelerate Decarbonization in the U.S. Dairy Supply Chain

  • Eric Hassel Vice President - Sustainability Standards, Measurement & Reporting, Innovation Center For US Dairy

Synopsis

  •  As expectations rise for companies, brands, and sectors to measure and manage their footprint, the need for credible and transparent Scope 3 accounting is increasingly urgent
  • Market-based mechanisms, both within and outside the value chain, provide necessary financial incentives and an operating margin for farmers to invest in sustainable practices and technologies that would otherwise be cost prohibitive
  • Current accounting standards create challenges and limitations for the dairy industry because – like the broader agriculture sector – it is both a GHG emissions source and sink
  • Case study: The Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy’s CEO Task Force on GHG Accounting developed a set of principles and potential solutions to increase transparency in Scope 3 accounting and unlock investment in emission reductions at scale

2:15 pm Incredibly Sustainable: A Tool Designed for U.S. Egg Farmers to Support Supply Chain Measurement & Reporting of GHG Emissions & Other Sustainability-Related Metrics

Synopsis

  •  Supply chain sustainability reporting for U.S. egg farmers has become increasingly difficult due to a lack of tools and support specific to commercial egg production
  • Through interviews with egg producers and the top egg buying companies in the U.S. supply chain, we built a tool that guides producers in reporting on the most requested metrics and disclosures
  • Embedded within the tool is a GHG calculator, the first of its kind designed specifically to assess the organizational footprint of an egg producer

2:45 pm Mastermind Discussion: Making Carbon Value Transparent by Building Trust & Value from Farm to Buyer

Synopsis

Join us in this mastermind session where the audience can collectively get involved in tackling one of the industry’s largest challenges. You’ll work with those on your table to outline the specifics of the challenge at hand, what has already been done to address this and then outline what can we do to move the needle now. Leave with a ready-made action plan. 

  • Examine how carbon is currently priced and valued in voluntary and compliance markets—and where those market signals break down for producers
  • Understand the real-world costs and complexities of proving carbon outcomes at the farm level, from data collection to MMRV compliance
  • Explore the growing disconnect between what end users demand and what producers must deliver—plus how better alignment can unlock shared value
  • Strategies for communicating carbon value clearly and credibly—both to stakeholders inside the chain and to the market at large

3:15 pm Chair’s Closing Remarks

  • Greg Goodwin Director - Precision Conservation Management, Illinois Corn Growers Association

3:30 pm End of the 2nd Carbon Accounting in Agricultural Supply Chains Summit