In a lively round with participants from research, associations and practice, the topic was examined and discussed from different angles.

Specifically, the talk dealt with the potential of humus to store CO₂ in arable land and the related debate on the sense and nonsense of CO₂ certificates as an incentive system for agriculture.

The use of humic substances for a sustainable humus build-up was also explained at length.

This resulted in a lively and informative exchange of ideas across the boundaries of the respective disciplines. Conclusion: Everything is possible, but not necessarily sensible.

In addition to the realization that humus build-up must be carried out permanently in order to maintain the humus balance up to a certain maximum limit, there was also the realization that subsidized humus build-up via CO₂ certificate trading is rather unsustainable. The application of premiums, as a reward for successful humus management of already motivated farmers, would possibly be more sensible and sustainable.

The five main lessons learned are summarized here: PDF