Artisan

The Global Artisan C-Sink Standard was developed by the Ithaka Institute in 2022 and has since scaled to become the largest CDR method for persistent carbon sinks. Networks of farmers across the global South are controlled and certified to produce biochar from residual feedstock on their own farms and apply it back to their own soils, increasing the climate resilience of their food production while generating verified carbon removal credits.

Since its first version, the Artisan Standard has sparked not only smallholder adoption but also professional and industrial biochar production in low- and middle-income countries. The standard now defines five production classes with progressively increasing requirements for technology, monitoring, and analytics:

Cook — Household-scale production using accredited TLUD cookstoves. Biochar is collected within villages and applied locally. The simplest entry point into certified carbon removal.

Network — Up to 1,000 farmers producing biochar from their own residual feedstock using flame-curtain kilns (Kon-Tiki) and applying it to their own land. Organised and supervised by a certified C-Sink Manager.

Pro — Centralised or mobile production from local feedstock, below 1,000 tonnes per year. Biochar may be sold but remains within the country or region. Lighter analytical and monitoring requirements than the higher classes.

Factory — Centralised production with no volume restriction. Biochar can be traded internationally. Substantially increased monitoring, inspection frequency, and analytical requirements — approaching the rigour of industrial certification.

Tech — Closed pyrolysis systems with no open fire, reduced emissions, higher carbon efficiency, and continuous temperature logging. The most technically demanding Artisan class, absorbing producers who operate advanced pyrolysis technology but outside the scope of the EBC.

For Cook, Network, and Pro, the standard requires that biochar stays close to where it is produced — tying carbon removal directly to local food security, soil restoration, and rural livelihoods. For Factory and Tech, biochar enters international trade, and monitoring, verification, and analytical requirements scale accordingly.

The certification system operates through in-country C-Sink Managers who organise production networks, ensure compliance, and are inspected on-site at least annually by independent validation and verification bodies. All certified carbon sinks are recorded in the Global C-Sink Registry. Forest wood may not be used; only residual biomass from farms, processing, and landscape management is permitted. The standard and its certification are operated by Carbon Standards International. The Ithaka Institute develops and curates the standard and conducts the technology audits.

Link to Carbon Standards International for further information