A NEW ambassador program to encourage growers to increase their soil carbon levels has begun a three-year trial through Carbon Ag Solutions and C-WISE.
The ambassador program includes four growers from WA who will trial the new C33 pellet product, which should increase organic carbon levels to maximise soil nutrients.
Ambassadors Brad Jones, Tammin, David Mackie, New Norcia, Barry West, Kulin and Ben Stanich, Pingrup, will create a wide range of trial sites across the State.
Carbon Ag Solutions chief executive officer Brad Wisewould said the ambassador program was important because it would allow growers to see the results in an independent trial, rather than a trial with a commercial agenda.
Mr Wisewould said the trial is "a proof of concept".
"Obviously we are very passionate about the pellet, but we need to prove its worth,'' Mr Wisewould said.
"We need people such as Brad Jones and our other ambassadors to understand the idea and get the whole meaning of the product out to the agricultural community.
"When I went to the field days all the farmers' feedback was about the need for independent trial data, which is where this program comes into place."
Mr Wisewould said the trials would concentrate on building up carbon in the root zone.
Over the three year trial period the farmers will continue to put the carbon pellet on top of the seed every year, hoping to prove that carbon is building up in that zone.
"The trial is about building carbon up in the soil, getting better health for plants and more utilisation of what is actually in the soil because carbon is a key to unlocking a lot of nutrition," Mr Wisewould said.
"We want to get an impression from our ambassadors on the C33 pellet product and how well it fits in with their program."
Mr Jones, who was hesitant to start seeding after 18 millimetres of rain was recorded two weeks ago, said he was excited to be involved in the organic carbon trial.
This year he plans to trial the C33 product with his normal fertiliser system, aiming to give his organic carbon levels a boost.
"We are putting it down the shoot with the air seeder because our air cart has three bins on it, so we have room to put it down," Mr Jones said.
"I just wanted carbon in my dirt.
"It's simple really, our soils with higher organic carbon levels are our better soils."
Mr Jones said without carbon they weren't utilising what they have in the soil.
"Carbon comes into the biological process as well," he said.
"We need the carbon as that food source for the soil."
Mr Jones, who viewed the C-WISE site a few weeks ago, said he was impressed with the green waste and piggery waste manufacturing plant and how it all comes together to create the pellet product.
"It's a long way off yet but we could have a carbon trading system in place soon and there will be a price put on carbon," he said.
"Especially with these big polluters, they need to find refuge from their big emissions and they will need a social licence to keep operating.
"So I want to jump on board with that and not only benefit our soils but maybe see an increased profit for farmers from other larger companies."
But independent trial operator and MEAG Soil Consultancy director HF De Wet said there were sometimes problems with the research being too complicated.
"Sometimes the problem is the research is a bit complicated and it can be confusing as to what the carbon is actually doing in the soil," Mr De Wet said.
"Whenever there is carbon in the soil, you will see a positive response to whatever you want to do to the soil, whether it's treating your seed with fungi or applying chemicals.
"But if people don't see a positive result in one year they will just put it on the back burner.
"Which is why we need to replicate this trial for at least three years then we may have enough data to show the positive results of organic carbon."
Mr De Wet said during the trial they would be testing all probable treatments and possibilities of applying organic carbon.
"Throughout the season we will monitor microbial colonisation on the root system, organic carbon in the root zone and root surface area plus a lot more," he said.
The carbon trial will see C33 pellets go down the shoot with either 100 per cent fertiliser, 75pc fertiliser, 50pc fertiliser and 25pc fertiliser.
"We want to know how much we can reduce the fertiliser by, which we hope is about 50pc," Mr De Wet said.
"But we also want to know what level of carbon we would need to have a big impact on the crop, because it's all dollars and cents at the end of the day."
Last year C-WISE distributed organic carbon through powder form and it planned to move it into pellets for better accessibility in broad scale agriculture.
C-WISE project manager Tim Casey said they hoped to be able to halve organic fertiliser use by combining it with an organic soil solution of high quality compost.
"This would be a huge benefit with these ambassadors, to be able to move the pellets easier," Mr Casey said.
"The introduction of the pellet means we can transport more carbon further and it's still financially viable for the farmers.
"This product is 10pc water, so it's more compact than other general composts that we use."
Mr Wisewould said the C33 product could be made in 14 weeks - which was a great turnaround time in terms of production.
"These carbon pellets holds 2.5 times themselves in water but also produce a salt tolerance due to the manufacturing process," Mr Wisewould said.
"We are looking at going to a granular product for next season and we are in the process of building a granular plant now.
"Next year we hope to produce 2000 tonnes of granule C33, which I think will benefit farmers because they are used to seeing granular in their air seeder, not pellets."