Cork-based business, The Forestry Company has entered into a partnership with Ireland’s first certified carbon management enterprise, Origin Xero.

The company said the move will offer farmers and landowners the opportunity to sell the carbon captured by their forest on the voluntary carbon market (VCM)

The VCM is the global market that provides the route for companies to offset their emissions voluntarily as part of their commitment to achieving net-zero emissions.

Carbon

According to The Forestry Company, carbon capture through afforestation helps to offset emissions and mitigate climate change by planting and managing forests to absorb carbon dioxide (CO2).

Conor Daly, managing director of The Forestry Company, said the company is “excited to partner with the Origin Xero team to bring this offering to market”.

“By giving landowners the opportunity to sell their carbon, we are adding even more ways to generate income from forestry in Ireland, along with grant payments and timber sales,” he said.

The Origin Xero carbon offsetting platform allows local landowners and farmers to sell credits generated from the carbon captured by their forests to individuals and businesses worldwide.

The platform, which has been certified by an official United Nations (UN) carbon auditor, uses climate and smart data technologies to generate and sell carbon credit packages to individuals, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and large corporations seeking to achieve sustainability objectives or net zero.

“We are so pleased to bring this unique opportunity to Ireland,” Eoin O’Riordan, founder of Origin Xero, said.

“Not only are we providing individuals and businesses, large and small, the opportunity to use Irish nature to meet their sustainability ambitions, but Irish land and forest owners now have a local partner to help generate new incomes from this market for the first time.

“By combining the expertise of The Forestry Company with our innovative carbon offset platform, this collaboration is set to create a lasting impact on both the environment and local communities across Ireland,” he said.

Forestry

The new partnership will be launched at The Forestry Company stand at the National Ploughing Championships in Ratheniska, Co. Laois from September 17-19.

The National Ploughing Championships is the perfect place for us to launch. Being a celebration of Ireland’s farmers and countryside, we look forward to spending the week chatting with those who will benefit most from being able to sell carbon,” O’Riordan said.

Established in 2009, The Forestry Company is one of Ireland’s largest timberland management companies.