The report found that progress in agriculture had reaped very unequal benefits and had come at high social and environmental costs. Considering that arable and permanent cropping systems of the world have the potential to sequester an estimated 200 kg of carbon/ha per year and pasture systems 100 kg of carbon/ha per year, together they could contribute to a total of 2.4 Gt CO -eq per annum of the world’s carbon sequestration. A minimum scenario of conversion to organic farming would mitigate no less than 40 per cent of the world’s agricultural GHG emissions. When combining organic farming with reduced tillage techniques, the sequestration rates on arable land could easily be increased to 500 kg of carbon/ha per year. This optimum organic scenario would mitigate 4 Gt COs-eq per year or 65 per cent of agricultural GHGs. Another approximately 20 per cent of agricultural GHGs could be reduced by abandoning the use of industrially produced nitrogen fertilizers, as is practiced by organic farms.