This article is from the Australian Property Journal archive
THE Commonwealth Bank is launching its Agri Green Loan, to enable farmers to access funding to reduce their emissions and enhance their natural capital.
The Agri Green Loan is part of CBA’s commitment to investing in environmental projects, while aiding the agriculture sector in cutting down greenhouse gases, while building resilience to increased climate variability.
The national launch of the loan comes after the success of the bank’s pilot program, which ran from November 2021.
“The drive towards greater sustainability is creating more opportunities for agribusinesses,” said Mike Vacy-Lyle, group executive of business banking at CBA, who noted that the agriculture sector currently represents 12% of Australian goods and services exported.
“Agribusinesses are continuing to take actionable steps to reduce their environmental impact and often also enhance farm productivity. Many of our customers are transforming their operations by investing in new technology and upgrading infrastructure to reduce emissions or adopt more sustainable farming practices.”
Throughout the course of the pilot program, eligibility covered broad range of sustainability practices, including projects to reduce emissions, sequester more carbon, improve soil health, promote biodiversity and vegetation cover, and protect waterways.
One such project was Queensland soil restoration innovator VRM Biologik’s accelerated roll-out of its patented regenerative farming technology, which restores and enriches soil, allowing for greater yields and growing environments in a more challenging landscape.
“The Agri Green Loan helps the whole industry to become more sustainable as farmers can look to improve their own regenerative growing practices or invest in other environmental projects,” said Ken Bellamy, founder and president of VRM Biologik.
The support of CBA’s Agri Green Loan enabled the successful growth of mustard from seed during frost over the winter, in Western Queensland.
“Our goal is to reduce the risk of food scarcity and support agriculture’s productivity and drought resilience,” added Bellamy.
