Because sustainable food doesn’t start in the supermarket. Start much earlier. It begins when a farmer decides how he is going to plant his plot.. Because, if you could choose, what would you feed your family?
To delve deeper into this topic, Nestlé has invited the university community of the Polytechnic University of Madrid to learn about the REGENERAtouran immersive experience installed on the university campus aboard a bus that runs on renewable HVO biofuel, capable of reducing greenhouse gas emissions per kilometer by at least 80% compared to conventional diesel. After touring the 10 Nestlé factories in Spain and its headquarters, the REGENERAtour has arrived in Madrid to explain, in an educational way, what regenerative agriculture is and how the company applies it both in Spain and internationally. It is a pedagogical tool designed to bring the consumer – and especially future agricultural engineers – closer to the real dimension of this transition.
In this way, more than 300 students, teachers and researchers have visited Nestlé’s REGENERAtour for two days to delve deeper and learn what regenerative agriculture is. In parallel, within this framework, and in order to address this topic from an academic, technical and professional perspective, the session “ARegenerative agriculture: towards a more sustainable diet“, which took place at the Higher Technical School of Agronomic, Food and Biosystems Engineering (ETSIAAB) of the Polytechnic University of Madrid, with the collaboration of Nestlé. With REGENERAtour, Nestlé proposes a strategic and sustainability approach that seeks to go beyond traditional sustainability, focusing on restoring and renewing the environment, natural resources and the livelihoods of agricultural communities. It is an interactive experience, like the one we propose below:
At the opening of the meeting, the director of the ETSIAAB, José Manuel Palacios, has highlighted “the relevance of regenerative agriculture in agroecosystems such as those of our country, in which soils undergo very marked mineralization and erosion processes over time.” In this context, he insists, it is essential to implement techniques that increase soil organic matter, improve fertility and contribute to carbon sequestration.
Recover, not just preserve
“In Europe there is still no consistent definition of regenerative agriculture“, explains the professor of Agronomic Engineering at the Polytechnic University of Cartagena, Raúl Zornoza. And yet, the concept advances. For Zornoza, it is not just about conservation. It is about recovery. Minimizing soil disturbance, maximizing crop diversity, maintaining living roots throughout the year and integrating livestock into the agricultural system. He talks about soil health as if it were a patient: a living organism that fulfills functions, houses biodiversity and offers resilience against to the climate.
Although there is not yet a single regulatory framework, the objective is shared: to actively improve the productive system so that itBe fertile today without mortgaging tomorrow.
Measure to avoid falling into the slogan
If something becomes clear during the day, it is that the word “regenerative” cannot remain a label. “The habit does not make the monk,” he warns Jordi Domingocoordinator of sustainable agriculture projects at Fundación Global Nature. “What is not measured cannot be demonstrated.” Domingo provides concrete data. On a demonstration farm in Extremadura, after applying rotational grazing, re-thinning and regenerative management, there is an 11% increase in global biodiversity, 40% more birds and clear improvements in plant diversity. “They are not sensations: they are indicators,” he emphasizes.
In cereal projects intended for child nutrition, the reduction of mineral fertilizers reaches 32%, with emissions drops close to 50%. For Domingo, the debate should not focus so much on the ideological purity of practices as on measurable results. Because, as you remember, only a minority of companies that talk about regenerative agriculture actually measure their impacts.
Profitability, the great pending conversation
But the transition does not occur in a vacuum. It happens on real farms, with real accounts. From the Madrid Agroconsultant Service of IMIDRA, Ricardo Nombela shares a clear perception: “more and more farmers are motivated to change. They are concerned about erosion, the loss of fertility, the appearance of new pests. They want more fertile soils, more resilient systems, less dependence on inputs.” However, he adds, the transition needs technical support and economic viability. The harshest voice comes from the field. Raúl San Juan Heras, farmer and researcher in the province of Segoviaputs figures to the uncertainty: the cost of fertilizers on their farm has practically doubled since 2020, going from 6,000–7,000 euros annually to 12,000–14,000. A tractor that previously cost less than 40,000 euros today exceeds 100,000. “We need stability,” he claims. Because investing in no-till seeders or machinery adapted to regenerative systems requires more than just conviction: it requires security. It also points to the need for varietal innovation, especially in legumes, to adapt to new climatic conditions. Regenerating is not just going back: it is combining tradition, science and genetic improvement.
The best indicator of success is this: that the soil we inherit tomorrow is more alive than the soil we work on today.
Innovate without forgetting tradition
From the research field, reflection goes beyond technique. Some dogmas are even questioned: whether agriculture is unfairly identified as the main cause of the loss of biodiversity without considering its historical role in the configuration of Mediterranean ecosystems; whether carbon costs are accounted for in a balanced way; whether active territory management should be valued more.
In parallel, José Luis García de Castro, director of Poultree and member of the Regenerative Agriculture Association, provides the livestock vision: “Regenerative agriculture is not a goal, it is a path.” It defends directed grazing as a key tool to restore pastures and reduce production costs, with reductions of up to 74% on certain farms. For him, the challenge is not to be more “ecological” in formal terms, but to produce food by regenerating the system that sustains it.
After touring the 10 Nestlé factories in Spain and its headquarters, the REGENERAtour arrives in Madrid to explain, in an educational way, what regenerative agriculture is and how it is applied both in Spain and internationally. It is a pedagogical tool designed to bring the consumer – and especially future agricultural engineers – closer to the real dimension of this transition.
The role of the industry: responsibility and scale
In this scenario, the food industry also assumes its responsibility. If nearly 72% of the emissions associated with the activity of a large food company come from the way ingredients are grown, the transformation begins in the field. The head of Sustainability projects at Nestlé Spain, Beatriz Guimaraes, expresses it clearly: “The company’s commitment to regenerative agriculture is not theoretical, it is a reality that is already transforming the crops of the farmers and ranchers with whom we collaborate. Being able to show these projects to students and future agronomists is essential to continue promoting practices that regenerate the soil, improve biodiversity and increase the resilience of the countryside.”
In Spain, the company has invested close to 12 million euros since 2021 to support almost 500 farmers and ranchers in regenerative practices. Today, all the tomato raw materials that arrive at the SOLÍS factory in Miajadas come from regenerative agriculture. The same occurs with all the cereal fields of Castilla y León and Navarra that supply the production of baby food in Cantabria. More than a hundred ranchers on the Cantabrian coast apply these practices on farms that supply milk to factories such as LA LECHERA in Pontecesures or the liquid infant milk plants in Sebares (Asturias) and the chocolate and powdered milk plants located in La Penilla de Cayón (Cantabria).
On an international level, programs such as Nescafé Plan promotes that 32% of the coffee used by the company now comes from farms with regenerative practiceswith the goal of reaching 50% by 2030. The Nestlé Cocoa Plan promotes agricultural and social improvements for 185,000 cocoa-producing families in 11 countries.
The debate is still open. Should regenerative agriculture be officially certified? What standards should be set? How to avoid greenwashing? What seems clear is that it cannot become an empty slogan. It must be based on measurable results, profitability for the producer and demonstrable environmental benefits. But you also need something more intangible: trust. Between farmers and administration. Between companies and producers. Between field and consumer. A path towards regenerative agriculture that begins to advance in collaboration with everyone.
