The agricultural sector accounts for 2 per cent of Westpac’s total committed exposures but a hefty 26 per cent of its financed emissions. That makes agri an important sector for the bank in meeting its net-zero target but it’s no easy task when 80 per cent of those emissions come from livestock. The bank hosted a sustainability update yesterday, reporting that it now has 12 financed emissions reductions targets covering eight sectors under Net-Zero Banking Alliance classifications. The target covering the agri sector is one of the new ones. The bank’s national general manager, regional and agribusiness, Peta Ward, said the bank was working with the industry to develop tools and information resources to help clients work on decarbonisation. Ward said the bank was seeing a range of initiatives on farms, including the conversion of milking sheds to solar power and changes to pasture management.  The bank has committed to no deforestation. This means no more conversion of natural forest to agricultural land use within farm systems from the end of 2025. But what about those methane-belching cows and sheep? Ward said businesses were experimenting with changes to their feed to reduce emissions. She said the agricultural sector had well-organised and progressive industry groups and there were plenty of projects that link meeting lower emissions targets with greater farm productivity. She said it was a sector where no single initiative would make the difference. Rather, many changes in aggregate would support transition – one herd at a time.