Google and McKinsey Contract 320,000 Tonnes of Carbon Removal from Brazilian Pastures

Google and McKinsey have signed long-term offtake agreements for 320,000 carbon credits from Working Trees, a San Francisco-based carbon removal developer that restores degraded Brazilian pastureland by planting trees on active cattle grazing operations.

The buyers will purchase 320,000 metric tonnes of carbon removal credits over a 10-year period. Working Trees will channel the secured funding into restoring 8,700 hectares of degraded and semi-degraded pasture, part of a wider 50,000-hectare project spanning the southeastern Amazon and the Cerrado region in central Brazil.

The deals were struck through the Symbiosis Coalition, an advance market commitment launched in 2024 by major technology buyers. The coalition has committed to contracting up to 20 million tonnes of nature-based carbon removal credits by 2030, a demand signal designed to bring high-impact, science-based restoration projects to scale.

What is silvopasture?

The Working Trees model rests on silvopasture, an agroforestry practice that integrates trees into grazing land. The approach aims to reduce deforestation pressure, restore soil health and improve agricultural productivity while removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. According to Symbiosis, scientists estimate that silvopasture could remove between 300 million and 1 billion metric tons of CO₂ annually worldwide.

Founded in 2021, Working Trees partners with landowners to implement silvopasture systems on degraded pasture. The company says its projects remove carbon dioxide, improve soil health, restore biodiversity and enhance agricultural productivity, all while livestock grazing continues.

Julia Strong, Executive Director of the Symbiosis Coalition, said: "Silvopasture is one of the most underused tools we have for nature-based carbon removal, and what excites us about the Working Trees project is how much room there is to scale it. Working Trees' project is sequestering carbon while also improving the land that communities rely on."

How will the restoration work on the ground?

The project will plant rows of native and commercial timber trees on existing cattle pastures. Livestock grazing continues alongside. The trees are expected to provide shade for cattle, improve soil health and water retention, enhance biodiversity and increase resilience to drought and disease.

The planting mix combines two categories of species:

• Native species, which deliver ecological benefits and additional resources for cattle and landowners.
• Commercial timber species, including African Mahogany and Teak, which are expected to generate long-term revenue and give landowners an economic reason to keep the trees standing, supporting the durability of the carbon removal.

The commercial revenue component addresses a persistent weakness in nature-based carbon projects: the risk that landowners remove trees once credit payments end.

What did the buyers say?

Randy Spock, Head of Carbon Removal at Google, said: "This partnership represents a significant leap forward for high-integrity, natural climate solutions. Cattle grazing is one of the most dominant land uses globally; by integrating trees directly onto active pastures, Working Trees demonstrates that we don't have to choose between food production and ecological restoration. It's a scalable, tech-driven approach that benefits both global carbon removal and local farming livelihoods."

Isabelle Schuhmann, Global Director of Environmental Sustainability at McKinsey, said: "Scaling high-integrity nature-based carbon removal is an essential part of our sustainability strategy. By supporting Working Trees' silvopasture model, we are backing a replicable approach to sustainable land use, unlocking large carbon sinks while strengthening the resilience of local economies."

What happens next?

The metric to track is delivery: 320,000 tonnes of verified removal across 8,700 restored hectares over the next decade. The transaction also marks progress against the Symbiosis Coalition's 2030 deadline for contracting up to 20 million tonnes of nature-based removal — a commitment that now has roughly six years left to run, with Working Trees among the suppliers filling it.