Case Study:

Exceeding MPI Milestones – Driving Membership with CarbonCrop

The Challenge

As part of its Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) funding, the Puketoi to the Pacific Catchment Collective (PPCC) needed to meet a key milestone: sign up a targeted number of landholders as formal members. While membership was free, farmers had to opt in, and with limited time and capacity, turning passive interest into active sign-ups was proving difficult.

Farmers were curious about the ETS and native planting, but many weren’t sure if it applied to them, or what the value of joining the collective actually was. PPCC needed a way to create urgency and offer something tangible.

How the platform was used

PPCC used CarbonCrop to offer free forest carbon assessments, exclusively to members. This gave landholders a clear reason to sign up and opened the door for deeper engagement.

Instead of asking farmers to join based on general interest, the team:

Offered a practical incentive - free forest carbon scans for members only
Used the CarbonCrop platform to assess individual properties and identify ETS-eligible native forest
Shared simple maps showing likely eligible areas, supported by historical imagery and carbon revenue estimates
Created an easy sign-up process, followed by timely, data-driven conversations with each new member

This flipped the model, giving farmers immediate, personalised insights in exchange for joining, rather than expecting commitment upfront.

Outcome

PPCC exceeded its MPI membership milestone target in record time. New members received tailored insights into their ETS potential, not just generic advice. The initiative helped shift landholders from curiosity to action, building trust and momentum for future projects.