The Better Cotton Initiative and Planboo are initiating a project on “Biochar” in India to increase soil health, support sustainable farming practices, and enhance climate-friendly practices in cotton farming. The Better Cotton Initiative (BCI) and the climate technology startup Planboo launched a new project that would pilot the use of biochar production on cotton farms in India with a view to measuring and monetizing changes in the environment.
The project, which is set to kick off in February 2026, will see a minimum of 75 farmers take the waste of last January’s cotton harvest and turn it into a substance known as biochar, which is a type of charcoal that has a huge potential advantage for carbon storage.
“Since our announcement of our collaboration with Planboo back in September, we have been working on identifying the location and partners that are necessary for the implementation of this promising solution. Biochar has the potential to unlock massive reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, as well as enhancing the resilience of farming communities against the effects of climate change.” This is what Lars van Doremalen, the Director of Impact at BCI, had to say.
In Gujarat and Maharashtra, three kilns will be established that have the capacity to process 375 tonnes of agricultural waste, which would produce 60-70 tonnes of biochar per day. The farmers have been given training dates in February 2026 to learn how to make use of the kilns to produce biochar, thereby changing from the practice of crop residue burning
The entire process, from the production of biochar to the determination of carbon removal, will be tracked by the Measurement, Reporting, and Verification (MRVin) tool, known as Planboo. This software is capable of accurately measuring waste inputs, the amount of biochar produced, carbon removal, which in turn facilitates easy availability of carbon data. The measurement of carbon reductions and removals with carbon data generates fresh sources of income.
Freddie Catlow, founder of Planboo, said, “Cotton farmers are sitting on an unrealized asset, namely crop residues, which are currently going up in smoke. Planboo’s MRVin technology gives farmers the chance to learn, burn, and earn by converting waste to biochar. This robust, accredited carbon offset solution helps farmers, which is the bedrock of the entire cotton textile industry.”
The project completion date is the end of 2026, at which point BCI will share learnings from a project with its membership. The project proposes measurement of the impact of biochar on key agricultural indicators such as crop yield, water retention, as well as reductions in emissions on the farm level. In the longer term, BCI and Planboo can also examine the feasibility of scaling such an approach by identifying the worth such an approach can bring, from the improvement achieved at a field level to scope 3 reduction data as well as carbon credits.
