How Farmers Get Carbon Credits: The Two Pathways

Every route to earning carbon credits starts the same way: a landholder implements a measurable practice change (reduced tillage, reforestation, cover cropping, avoided clearing), an accredited body verifies the resulting tonnes of CO₂-equivalent removed or avoided, and a registry issues a tradable credit for each tonne. Where farmers differ is which registry they sell into.

In Australia, that registry is the CER, and the unit is the ACCU. Outside Australia — including US, UK, EU, and Canadian farms — there is no equivalent government-run credit-issuing scheme for agricultural soil carbon; instead, farmers sell into voluntary carbon market registries such as Verra (VCS), the American Carbon Registry, and Climate Action Reserve. The mechanics (baseline, methodology, verification, sale) are similar, but the buyers, prices, and oversight bodies are not. We cover both below, starting with the regulated Australian scheme since that’s where the bulk of search demand for this topic sits, then the voluntary-market route relevant to USDA-supported climate-smart practices in North America and Europe.

For a broader look at selling carbon credits across sectors, and the mechanics of soil carbon sequestration itself, see our companion guides. If your operation spans multiple Australian properties, our dedicated carbon farming Australia strategy guide goes deeper on methodology selection.

Understanding the ACCU Scheme

Each ACCU equals one tonne of CO₂-equivalent sequestered or avoided through a CER-approved activity. The CER regulates and issues ACCUs against a fixed set of published methodologies — there is no informal or unregistered route to creating one. There are two ways to sell an ACCU once issued:

• Emissions Reduction Fund (ERF): sell directly to the Australian government via competitive reverse auction. Historical clearing prices and volumes for every auction round are published at the ERF auction results page — check that page directly for the current clearing price rather than relying on a quoted figure, since it updates after every auction round.
• Voluntary market: negotiate directly with private buyers seeking emissions offsets, often at a premium when the project carries biodiversity or community co-benefits.

Full methodology list, including plantation forestry, permanent environmental plantings, and soil carbon, is at the CER’s ACCU scheme methods page.

Selling Carbon Credits on the Voluntary Market: US, UK, EU, Canada

Outside Australia, farmers selling carbon credits sell into the global voluntary carbon market, not a government scheme. Ecosystem Marketplace and MSCI’s 2025 survey put agricultural soil carbon credit prices at $14.80 per tonne for high-quality, A-AAA-rated credits and as low as $3.50 per tonne for low-quality, CCC-B-rated credits — a more than 4x spread driven almost entirely by verification rigor and permanence guarantees, per the MSCI Carbon Credit Survey. A separate Ecosystem Marketplace estimate puts the broader agricultural credit average at $4–6 per tonne as of 2024–2025, reflecting the fact that most enrolled acreage sits closer to the low-quality end of that range than the premium end (source: Ecosystem Marketplace, via Omdena).

The global voluntary carbon market — agriculture, forestry, and land use combined — is projected to reach $3 billion in value by 2026, growing at a compound annual rate of 20% from 2025 to 2035, per Ecosystem Marketplace and MSCI. That growth is the reason buyer demand for verified agricultural credits has been rising even as per-tonne prices stay modest.

US farmers should start with USDA’s NRCS Climate-Smart Agriculture programs — EQIP, CRP, and CSP provide cost-share and technical assistance for practices (cover cropping, reduced tillage, nutrient management) that also build the baseline data a carbon registry needs. NRCS does not publish national per-practice payment rates; these vary by state and sign-up period, so contact your local NRCS field office for the current EQIP/CSP rate schedule rather than a quoted number that will be out of date by the next sign-up window. For a plain-language walkthrough of how the market mechanics work for US grain growers, see the Nebraska Corn Board’s agricultural carbon markets explainer.

One figure that matters regardless of market: permanence. Voluntary protocols (CAR, VCS, NORI, GSOC) require carbon storage to be maintained for 8 to 100 years depending on the protocol, per a University of Illinois College of Law review of voluntary carbon market agricultural sequestration protocols. A shorter permanence window generally trades at a discount because buyers price in reversal risk — tilling a field back up, or a drought releasing stored carbon, can claw back the credit.

7 Steps to Sell Carbon Credits in Australia

1. 1. Assess Eligibility and Select the Right Carbon Farming Methodology

   Start by evaluating your property’s soil type, rainfall, vegetation, legal tenure, and current use against the CER’s published methodologies:

   • Plantation Forestry: establishing or maintaining forests for commercial harvest (see method)
   • Permanent Environmental Plantings: reforesting cleared land with native species (see details)
   • Soil Carbon Sequestration: reduced tillage and cover cropping to raise soil organic carbon (learn more)

   Consult a carbon farming service provider before committing — methodology fit drives everything downstream, including how many ACCUs a given hectare count can realistically generate.

2. 2. Develop a Comprehensive Carbon Farming Plan

   Map every activity from baseline soil sampling through to your implementation strategy. Your plan needs defined activities, a verified baseline, and monitoring/reporting systems built in from day one. Local Natural Resource Management groups and the federal outreach program publish planning resources (see guidelines).

3. 3. Register Your Project with the CER

   No ACCUs are issued without registration. Submit maps, baseline assessments, and a monitoring plan that strictly follows an approved methodology — expect periodic audits. Full requirements are in the CER’s registration and verification guidelines.

4. 4. Implement Carbon Farming Activities with Precision

   Execute the plan exactly as registered: plant and maintain native species in rehabilitation zones, apply the soil management practices your methodology specifies, and keep meticulous field records. Farmonaut’s Carbon Footprinting solution tracks emissions reduction against your registered plan so drift gets caught before an audit does.

5. 5. Monitor, Verify, and Report for ACCU Generation

   Track and document tonnes of CO₂-e sequestered or avoided each year, then engage a third-party independent auditor for verification. Only verified projects receive ACCUs — file reports with the CER on the schedule your methodology requires.

6. 6. Sell Your ACCUs: ERF Auctions & Voluntary Market

   • ERF Auctions: bid to sell directly to government (see auction results)
   • Voluntary Market: sell to private buyers directly or via a broker/aggregator, often at a premium for biodiversity co-benefits (see overview)

7. 7. Analyze, Adapt, and Scale for Ongoing Income

   Review ERF auction clearing prices and voluntary-market trends regularly rather than treating your first sale as a fixed benchmark. Scale by expanding project area, layering in a second eligible methodology, or using Farmonaut’s large-scale farm management suite to monitor multiple properties under one registered project.

Step-by-Step Comparison Table: Income from Carbon Credits

Key Considerations Before Starting Carbon Farming

• Legal Rights & Tenure: confirm full legal ability to implement carbon farming activities — freehold/leasehold clarity and any native title issues (read more).
• Financial Planning: weigh up-front costs (baseline, registration, audits) and annual costs (monitoring, maintenance) against realistic income at current credit prices (plan here).
• Credit Quality: high-quality, A-AAA-rated agricultural soil credits sold for $14.80/tonne in the 2025 MSCI survey versus $3.50/tonne for low-quality, CCC-B-rated credits — verification rigor and permanence length are what separate the two tiers, not the underlying practice.
• Permanence Obligations: protocols require maintaining sequestered carbon for 8 to 100 years depending on the standard — factor that commitment into any land-sale or lease decision, not just the current season.
• Regulatory Compliance: every step, from methodology adherence to reporting, must comply with CER (Australia) or your chosen registry’s standard — keep documentation audit-ready at all times.

Carbon Credit Income Calculator

Estimate potential annual income from selling agricultural carbon credits by entering your acreage, expected sequestration rate, and the credit quality tier you’re likely to achieve.

Assumes constant per-acre sequestration and a single quality tier for all credits generated; excludes registration, baseline, audit, and monitoring costs, and does not account for buffer-pool deductions some registries withhold against reversal risk. Prices are 2025 MSCI Carbon Credit Survey figures — check current listings before relying on this for a sale decision.

Boosting Carbon Farming Success with Farmonaut Solutions

Verification, monitoring, and precision are what separate a high-quality (A-AAA) credit from a low-quality (CCC-B) one — and the price gap between those tiers, $14.80 versus $3.50 per tonne, is exactly why the monitoring layer matters as much as the practice itself. Here’s how Farmonaut supports that layer:

• Carbon Footprinting for Compliance & Optimization: track emissions reduction, soil organic carbon trends, and sequestration rates in real time with Farmonaut’s carbon footprinting solution.
• Satellite-Based Crop and Soil Monitoring: multispectral NDVI, soil moisture, and growth analytics automate ongoing monitoring for permanent environmental plantings, soil carbon sequestration, and plantation forestry projects.
• Blockchain-Based Traceability: for voluntary-market projects, Farmonaut’s blockchain-based traceability demonstrates transparency and can support a premium quality rating.
• Resource and Fleet Management: fleet and resource management tools streamline field activity tracking that feeds directly into audit documentation.
• Scale-Up with Centralized Management: multi-property operations use large-scale farm management tools for complete oversight across a registered project boundary.
• API Integrations for Enterprise: integrate satellite, weather, and farm data via the Farmonaut API and developer documentation.
• Access to Financing: strengthen crop loan and insurance eligibility with satellite-based verification data.

Open the Farmonaut app to start building the monitoring record your carbon project will need at verification.

FAQs: Carbon Credits & Farming

How do farmers get carbon credits?

A farmer selects an eligible practice (soil carbon, reforestation, avoided clearing), registers a project against an approved methodology with the relevant registry (CER in Australia; VCS, ACR, or CAR in the US/global voluntary market), establishes a verified baseline, implements and monitors the practice, and passes third-party verification. Only after verification does the registry issue a tradable credit.

How do I create carbon credits from my land?

You don’t create a credit directly — a registry issues one after your project is registered, implemented, monitored, and independently verified against an approved methodology. There is no shortcut that skips verification; unverified sequestration has no tradable value.

What are carbon credits and ACCUs?

Carbon credits represent a measurable, verifiable reduction or sequestration of greenhouse gases. In Australia, ACCUs are the official unit, each equal to one tonne of CO₂-e offset, avoided, or stored through an approved activity.

How much can I earn selling carbon credits?

On the voluntary market, agricultural soil carbon credits sold for $14.80/tonne (high-quality, A-AAA rated) down to $3.50/tonne (low-quality, CCC-B rated) per the 2025 MSCI Carbon Credit Survey, with a broader agricultural average of $4–6/tonne per Ecosystem Marketplace. In Australia, ACCU prices are set at ERF auction or by voluntary-market negotiation — check the ERF auction results page for the current clearing price.

Is my land eligible for carbon farming?

Eligibility depends on land type, tenure, current use, and (in Australia) state/territory rules. The CER publishes approved methodologies that set the criteria (list here). Outside Australia, USDA NRCS field offices can assess eligibility for climate-smart cost-share programs that often precede a voluntary-market carbon project.

What’s the difference between the ERF and voluntary carbon markets?

The ERF is Australia’s government-regulated scheme, involving auctions to meet national targets. The voluntary market — used by farmers everywhere, including the US, UK, EU, and Canada — consists of private buyers seeking to offset emissions beyond legal requirements, often at prices set by credit quality rating rather than auction.

How long must I maintain sequestered carbon?

Permanence requirements range from 8 to 100 years depending on the protocol (CAR, VCS, NORI, GSOC), per a University of Illinois College of Law review. Longer permanence commitments generally support higher credit quality ratings and prices.

Further reading:

• see details
• see guidelines
• CER’s published guidelines

Conclusion: Start Your Carbon Credit Journey

Selling carbon credits — whether as ACCUs through Australia’s CER or as voluntary-market soil carbon credits elsewhere — rewards the same fundamentals: an eligible practice, a verified baseline, disciplined monitoring, and independent verification. Credit quality, not just acreage, is what moves the price: the gap between a $14.80/tonne high-quality credit and a $3.50/tonne low-quality one is entirely a function of verification rigor and permanence length.

• Assess your land, select a methodology, and build a documented plan.
• Register with the CER (Australia) or your chosen voluntary registry before implementation, not after.
• Monitor continuously — the technology you use to track sequestration is part of what determines your credit’s quality rating.
• Check current prices at the source (ERF auction results or the MSCI Carbon Credit Survey) before budgeting income.
• Reap the dual reward: a verified sustainability record and a new revenue stream.

Install the Farmonaut app or access the web platform to start building your monitoring record today.