Kernel agroholding has signed the world’s first deal to sell sunflower oil with a reduced carbon footprint and verified climate impact, the company’s press service reported.
"Despite the war and constant pressure on our operations, we continue working on climate-resilient solutions in the agricultural sector. And this deal proves that we can not only implement the relevant practices in production, but also verify the results through calculations and turn them into commercial value," said Marta Trofimova, Kernel’s head of sustainability.
The buyer was a multinational corporation pursuing a global net-zero carbon strategy, which paid a premium above the market price for verified emissions reductions in the product’s production, the statement said.
The carbon footprint reduction is achieved at three stages: sunflower cultivation, supply chain tracking, and oil production.
The project is based on a system for precisely calculating a harvest’s carbon footprint at the level of individual fields, taking into account soil, weather conditions, crop rotation and cultivation technologies. This makes it possible to identify fields where sunflowers are grown with the lowest climate impact and to build low-carbon supply chains.
The company tracks the entire chain - from the fields with the lowest carbon footprint, through elevators, to the plant - and can confirm exactly which fields the product comes from and the volume of reduced greenhouse gas emissions associated with it.
Kernel’s processing plants use electricity from renewable sources, further reducing atmospheric emissions.
"The global market for low-carbon agricultural products is only just taking shape. The size of the climate premium is calculated based on the volume of verified emissions reductions and the market value of a tonne of carbon, so the price can reach $100 or more per tonne of CO2 equivalent," the statement said.
To further automate calculations, ensure compliance with international standards, and scale up its low-carbon offering, Kernel has begun cooperating with the international technology company Regrow, the statement said.
According to the company, this is the first case on the global agricultural market in which transparency and verified emissions reductions across the entire production chain have created real added value for a product.
Kernel agroholding is the world’s largest producer and exporter of sunflower oil, Ukraine’s largest grain exporter, an operator of an extensive network of logistics assets, and a leading producer of grain and oilseed crops in Ukraine. It is also one of the largest producers and sellers of bottled oil in Ukraine. The company grows agricultural products and sells them.
For the first nine months of fiscal year 2026 (starting July 1, 2025), Kernel’s net profit fell 5% to $208 million, revenue rose 0.4% to $3.092 billion, and EBITDA rose 1% to $403 million.
