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Crop Insurance: A Safety Net Becomes a Threat

When it comes to the crop insurance sweepstakes, southwest Minnesota farmer Darwyn Bach is a winner. But he concedes that his good fortune presents a quandary, since the way the program is implemented these days creates significant losers: the soil, beginning farmers and Main Street businesses that suffer when the number of families in a…  Read More

Getting the Facts Straight on Environmental Review & Factory Farms

The Land Stewardship Project has been fighting a proposal making its way through the Minnesota Legislature this year that would double the size factory farms can be before environmental review is required. Proponents of the bill are pushing hard, and have been justifying this outrageous proposal by providing inaccurate information about the history of the…  Read More

We Are Not Fated to Repeat Dirty History

The United Nations-Food and Agriculture Organization has declared 2015 the International Year of Soils. That’s fitting, given how reliant the entire world is on keeping our soil in place, as well as keeping it healthy. But this isn’t exactly new information: years ago I happened upon a 1953 pamphlet called Conquest of the Land Through…  Read More

2023 Minnesota Legislative Session Wrap-Up 

Historic Wins for Sustainable & Regenerative Ag, Small & Mid-sized Farmers & Rural Communities 

During the recently concluded session of the Minnesota Legislature, Land Stewardship Project members and partners worked to win record investments in sustainable and regenerative agriculture, small and mid-sized farmers, and rural communities after decades of underfunding. We won a MinnesotaCare Public Option, as well as historic investments in the Emerging Farmers Office at the Minnesota…  Read More

It’s a Wrap: The Largest Family Farm Breakfast & Lobby Day in LSP History

LSP Members Made their Voices Heard at the Capitol on April 13

On Thursday, April 13, over 300 Land Stewardship Project members, supporters, staff, and elected and appointed public officials gathered in Saint Paul for our 17th Family Farm Breakfast & Lobby Day – the largest Family Farm Breakfast in LSP history! This year, the event was co-hosted by: Clean Up the River Environment (CURE) ♦ Climate Land Leaders…  Read More

Line 3 Environmental Damage & State Regulatory Failure

It's Now Clear Approval of the Pipeline Failed the Land, Our Water & People

Note: The Land Stewardship Project’s current long-range plan outlines why we cannot have a sustainable society while we rely on a system focused on extractive fossil fuels. In the plan, LSP promises to “advance solutions to the climate crisis by innovating and promoting resilient, soil-building farming systems and moving our society away from a reliance on fossil fuels.” It…  Read More

Farm Beginnings Profile: The Incubator Acre

A to Z's Mini-Plot is a Vital Link in the Beginning Farmer Chain

When Lauren Barry pulls a weed or harvests a tomato this summer, she’s doing so on a one-acre plot of land steeped in history. Not the ancient, dusty kind that may or may not have relevance to the current situation, but history rooted in recent growing seasons, when other beginning farmers faced the same meteorological,…  Read More

2023 Minnesota Legislative Session Update — 4 Weeks Left!

Many LSP Priorities Are Still in Play

During this session of the Minnesota Legislature, Land Stewardship Project members have been making their voices heard loud and clear. Dozens of farmers and rural LSP members have testified in committee hearings, hundreds have come to the Capitol to meet with their elected officials, and thousands have taken action by signing a petition, contacting their…  Read More

Making Change from the Ground Up: 40 Stories for 40 Years of Land Stewardship Project

During the Land Stewardship Project’s 40-year history, we’ve always emphasized the power of sharing our stories. We have pulled together member recollections of LSP’s impact on people, the land, and our communities. These stories are featured in a commemorative 40th Anniversary publication that’s now available for $40, plus shipping. (102 pages, color photos)