The short answer. Every result we report carries its accuracy. Real soil samples anchor the result, satellite imagery and AI extend it across the field at 100 readings a hectare, and the error of that extension is measured against samples the AI never saw, then deducted in full before anything is reported. So the change on your report is the change we can stand behind in front of an auditor, a buyer or a lender.
Why a single number is not enough
You already test for P, K and pH, and you already know your fields are varied: the headland, the light patch, the corner that goes first in a dry year. A standard soil test averages all of that into one number, and the variation disappears. A soil carbon figure with no stated accuracy is the same thing. It is a number you cannot act on, because you do not know whether a change of two tonnes a hectare is real or noise, and it is a number you cannot defend, because nobody else knows either.
How the error is measured
Physical samples from your fields are analysed by dry combustion in an ISO-accredited laboratory. Our AI ties those results to satellite imagery to give a value every 10 metres. To find out how good that step is, some samples are held back and the AI never sees them. Its estimate at those points is then compared with what the laboratory actually found. The difference is the error, measured on your farm, on your soil, in that year, rather than taken from a textbook or assumed from a model.
The physical samples are the anchor. The satellite never replaces them; it fills in the variation between them. That is what increases field-level accuracy enough to report change you can act on, rather than an average that tells you nothing about the underlying variability. The full method is described in how soil carbon is measured.
Deducted in full
The measured error is then deducted in full before the change is reported. This is the conservative approach a registry requires, and we apply it on every tier, not only when credits are involved. What remains on the report is the change we can evidence.
For you, it separates signal from noise, so a bad year shows up as a bad year and a good practice shows up as a good practice. For a buyer in your supply chain, it is supplier-specific data to the standards their auditors will use from 2027. For a lender or an insurer, it is measured evidence of soil resilience rather than an assumption about it.
The same standard on every tier
Our method went through four rounds of independent scientific review to earn Regen Registry accreditation and its own credit class. It is audited by Carbon Direct and Nova-Cert, verified to ISO 14065 and rated by BeZero in the global top 30%. Registry-accredited methodology, third-party verification and an immutable ledger mean the numbers hold up to audit. Every round is measured to that standard whichever tier you are on, so if a credit market opens that is worth your while, the measurement history is ready and compliant, and stepping up is a decision rather than starting again.
What it looks like on your report
Change against your own baseline, field by field, with the accuracy stated alongside it, and a map of each field at 10-metre resolution showing where carbon is being held or lost. Because we track annual change in soil carbon, management practice, yield and emissions across every project we monitor, the report can also show what turned the same pattern around on comparable farms.
Questions we are asked about accuracy
Is a satellite estimate as good as a sample?
No, and it is not asked to be. The samples are the anchor. The satellite fills in the variation between them, and the error of doing so is measured against held-back samples and deducted. A sample-only result would be more certain at the sample points and blind everywhere else.
Why not just take more samples?
More samples cost more, and no sampling density a farm could afford gets close to 100 readings a hectare. The satellite reaches that density between the samples, and the held-back check keeps it honest.
Does the deduction make my result smaller?
It makes it defensible. What remains is change we can evidence in front of an auditor, which is worth more to you, to a buyer and to a lender than a larger number nobody can check.
How do I get my fields measured?
Send us your SBI number and your hectares and we will send a written quote within two working days. Minimum project area is 150 hectares. Get a quote.
Part of our guide to soil carbon measurement for farms. Related: how soil carbon is measured · soil carbon and yield · the science behind the method.
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