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Land Line: Food Systems, Funding Freeze, John Deere, Immigration, Regenerative Farm Family

March 3: An LSP Round-up of News Covering Land, People & Communities

By Brian DeVore
March 3, 2025

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Surrounded by Crops in Minnesota
Farm Country, but with Little to Eat

(2/26/25) Star Tribune columnist Karen Tolkkinen writes about the paradox plaguing rural communities in western Minnesota: despite massive amounts of land being devoted to agricultural production, little fresh, affordable food is available for local residents. Highlights:

  • A recent study of the food system in five Minnesota counties — Douglas, Grant, Pope, Stevens, and Traverse — found that residents drive 40 miles or more to Alexandria to buy groceries from Walmart, which opened in 1991, or Aldi, which opened in 2014. About half the grocery stores in those five counties have closed since 1990.
  • A recent food forum organized by the Land Stewardship Project at the University of Minnesota-Morris brought together farmers, retailers, students, and food system experts to talk about the role community-based food systems could play in supporting rural economies while feeding rural residents.

For more on LSP’s Community-Based Food Systems work, click here.

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Iowa Farmers are Relying on Now-Frozen Regional Food Infrastructure Grants

(2/26/25) Writing in the Iowa Capital Dispatch, farmers Wendy Johnson, Carmen and Maja Black, Jason and Hannah Grimm, and Emma and Marcus Johnson describe the community benefits that result from Regional Food Systems Infrastructure (RFSI) grants. These farmers are all recipients of RFSI grants, which have been frozen by the federal government. Highlights:

  • These grants are for one-time purchases to acquire equipment and improve facilities for local food aggregation and distribution. Some of these purchases have already been made with the contractual understanding that farmers would be reimbursed.
  • In late 2024, Iowa funded 24 RFSI grants, a $3,018,154 investment in Iowa agriculture. These projects are projected to support over 300 local farmers growing their farm businesses, increasing market access through connections to the food hub network that exists in Iowa.
  • These dollars help kickstart new Main Street businesses and support and provide markets for more Iowa food producers.

On Feb. 17, the Minnesota Senate Agriculture Committee heard LSP farmer-member Hannah Bernhardt and others discuss the impacts of the federal funding freeze and how this relates to state agriculture programs. Highlights of the hearing are available here. For details on sharing your story and how to get a message to lawmakers about the importance of these programs, see LSP’s action alert.

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Amid Trump’s Threats to Deport Workers, Wisconsin & Minnesota Dairy Farmers Travel to Mexico

(2/25/25) The Wisconsin Examiner‘s Ruth Conniff reports on a trip to Mexico organized by Puentes/Bridges to connect Wisconsin dairy farmers with the families of their workers.  Highlights:

  • John Rosenow, who dairy farms near Waumandee, Wis., says 13 of his 18 employees are from Mexico.
  • Latin American workers, most of them from Mexico, perform an estimated 70% of the labor on Wisconsin dairy farms. Almost all of the immigrant workers who milk cows in the U.S. lack legal status. While the U.S. government provides visas for migrant workers who pick seasonal crops and for immigrants with specialized technical skills, there is no U.S. visa program for low-skilled labor in year-round industries like dairy.
  • Undocumented workers pay about $97 billion in total taxes, according to the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. About $26 billion of that goes to fund Social Security and $6 billion for Medicare — programs from which those workers are excluded.

LSP recently participated in a press conference organized by the Immigrant Defense Network; details are here. A Land Stewardship Letter review of Ruth Conniff’s book, Milked: How an American Crisis Brought Together Midwestern Dairy Farmers & Mexican Workers is available here.

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FTC Should Not Let John Deere Off the Hook

(2/19/25) Dave Dickey, a columnist for Investigate Midwest, writes about a recent lawsuit filed against John Deere by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the state attorneys general in Minnesota and Illinois. The lawsuit asks for a permanent injunction of Deere’s current practices that restrict farmers and independent repair shops from working on Deere equipment. Highlights:

  • The lawsuit charges that: “…Deere has acquired and maintained monopoly power in a relevant market for the provision of repair services that require the use of a fully functional repair tool…As a consequence, Deere’s dealers are able to maintain a 100% market share and charge supracompetitive prices for restricted repairs, and Deere itself reaps additional profits through parts sales.”
  • Dickey writes that, “The FTC complaint was a long time coming…Ask any farmer if they believe John Deere has been dealing off the top of the deck when it comes to software repair tools and you’ll get an earful.”
  • However, the new chair of the FTC, Andrew Ferguson, voted against the lawsuit moving forward, and says he is currently in discussions with John Deere about the issue.

Consolidation in agriculture and restrictions on farmers’ rights when it comes to repairing their own equipment will be the focus of a LSP town hall meeting featuring Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison on Tuesday, March 4. Details are here.

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Growing Healthy Soil & Grass Regenerates
Minnesota Farm & Its Future

(2/25/25) The Bergler family is using managed rotational grazing and cover cropping to build soil health, which has resulted in healthier animals and a better quality of life for the family, reports Morning Ag Clips. Highlights:

  • Never applying more than 100 pounds of nitrogen fertilizer per acre, the Berglers harvest 230 bushel-per-acre corn behind a seven-way grain mix with peas and flax.
  • The Berglers no longer uses dewormer or other prophylactic vaccinations prescribed in conventional confined animal operations. The pregnancy rate of his herd is 99%.
  • “I used to feed 200 plus days a year,” said Luke Bergler. “Each day it would take about two hours of time. Now we feed less than 130-140 days a year and it only takes me 20-30 minutes. I used to haul 80-100 loads of manure each year and now I’m down to seven. All of those little things add up to an improved quality of life.”

The Berglers hosted an LSP soil health field day in 2022. Check out an LSP Ear to the Ground podcast interview with Luke Bergler here. Information on building soil health profitably is available on LSP’s Soil Health web page. A recent LSP blog series describes how 11 farms are utilizing various regenerative production methods to become economically and environmentally sustainable.

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Category: Blog
Tags: community based food systems • funding freeze • immigration • regenerative farming • right to repair

LSP Land Line

LSP Land Line is a regular round-up of local, regional, and national news that touches on the work of the Land Stewardship Project. We can’t include everything, but if you have a news item to submit, e-mail Brian DeVore.

Quotes of the Day

 “It’s good that other people know that we’re not all bad people — that people know and can value the work and sacrifices we are making.”

        — Celeste Tzanahua Hernández, who lives in the Mexican state of Veracruz &
whose family has worked on dairy farms in Wisconsin 

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“It doesn’t mean we don’t have setbacks, challenges or financial issues. After all, we are American farmers. But when you abide by the principles, believe in the system and pay attention, it’s remarkable what can happen. There are so many things working now that it just blows my mind.”

        — Southeastern Minnesota farmer Luke Bergler

♦ ♦ ♦

“When we signed these contracts, we committed to what they contained and expected the government to honor its word.”

— Farmers Wendy Johnson, Carmen & Maja Black, Jason & Hannah Grimm, & Emma & Marcus Johnson

♦ ♦ ♦

LSP in the News

Check out recent media stories featuring LSP’s work here.

Upcoming Events

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July 2025

Wednesday July 9

12:00 pm – 2:00 pm
LSP Lewiston Office Summer Potluck Lunch
Wednesday July 9
12:00 pm – 2:00 pm
LSP Lewiston Office Summer Potluck Lunch
Land Stewardship Project, 180 E Main St, Lewiston, MN 55952, USA

Spring planting is behind us and midsummer is upon us! Take a quick break from all the action by celebrating summer with the Land Stewardship Project by joining us for lunch at our Lewiston office.

Our Summer Potluck will be held on Wednesday, July 9, from noon to 2 p.m., at our office in downtown Lewiston, Minn. (180 E. Main Street). This will be an opportunity to build community, hear from other farmers, socialize, and enjoy a great meal together. We also invite everyone to take a self-guided tour of the newly renovated spaces in our office that we have been working on over the winter. As a member-driven organization, this is your space too.

LSP will be providing the main dish (meat and vegetarian options) and we invite you to bring a dish to pass. This event is open to all, so please bring a friend or two as well. Let’s celebrate the joy of summer through good food and good company!

RSVP’s are encouraged, but not required. Hope to see you there — you can RSVP by e-mailing LSP’s Alex Romano direct.

Saturday July 12

10:00 am – 2:00 pm
Fishing, Farming & Food: Rush Creek's Fish Kill Anniversary & Why it Matters
Saturday July 12
10:00 am – 2:00 pm
Fishing, Farming & Food: Rush Creek's Fish Kill Anniversary & Why it Matters
Farmers Community Park, 23274 Arches Road Lewiston, MN 55952

During the Fishing, Farming & Food: Rush Creek’s Fish Kill Anniversary & Why it Matters event, the Land Stewardship Project will mark the three-year anniversary of a major fish kill in southeastern Minnesota that spawned citizen action and led to new public policy around how such events are reported. Join Land Stewardship Project and our partners at Farmers Park, Saturday July 12, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in Lewiston, Minnesota. Register here.

What to expect?

  • Fly fishing demonstration led by Minnesota Trout Unlimted and LSP member, Lee Stoe. Please bring your own fishing gear.

  • Minnesota Trout Unlimited & Izaak Walton League staff and members will be leading macroinvertebrate sampling of Garvin Brook and discussing what they tell us about the health of the stream.

  • Discussion on how regenerative farming systems can support healthy soil and clean water.

  • Opportunity to take action! Help prevent future fish kills by sharing how you think the Minnesot Feedlot Rule, which is open for comment through July 22, should be stronger. Postcards will be available to fill out and send with your comments.

  • Farmers Park is a great spot for birding. Please bring your binoculars!

  • You are welcome to bring your own snacks or picnic lunch; food will not be provided at this event.

LSP is partnering with several community groups for this event, including:

Minnesota Trout Unlimited, Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy, Izaak Walton League, Food & Water Watch, and Savanna Institute

Register HERE. For more information, contact LSP’s Kate Rowe at krowe@landstewardshipproject.org.

Tuesday July 15

5:00 pm – 8:00 pm
Organic Fruit & Vegetable Field Day
Tuesday July 15
5:00 pm – 8:00 pm
Organic Fruit & Vegetable Field Day
1805 Dudley Ave, Falcon Heights, MN 55113, USA

Join U of M researchers and Extension for updates on organic fruit and vegetable research and tour the Student Organic Farm and the Minnesota Agricultural Experiment Station in Saint Paul. Topics include: organic insect management, integrating livestock into vegetable farms, new crops for Minnesota, irrigation strategies, and more. Free to the public.
 
For details and to register, click here.

Wednesday July 16

9:30 am – 2:30 pm
Russell Hedrick Soil Health Event: Cottonwood County
Wednesday July 16
9:30 am – 2:30 pm
Russell Hedrick Soil Health Event: Cottonwood County
27092 Co Rd 8, Comfrey, MN 56019, USA

Details here.

Thursday July 17

9:30 am – 2:30 pm
Russell Hedrick Soil Health Event: Pipestone County
Thursday July 17
9:30 am – 2:30 pm
Russell Hedrick Soil Health Event: Pipestone County
518 30th Ave, Jasper, MN 56182

Details are here.

View Full Calendar

Recent Posts

  • ‘Fishing, Farming & Food: Rush Creek’s Fish Kill Anniversary & Why it Matters’ Event July 12 Near Lewiston July 8, 2025
  • Contributing to the Cause July 8, 2025
  • Contact the MPCA by July 22 About Revising its Feedlot Rules July 2, 2025
  • Tell Your Representatives: We Want a Farm Bill for All, Not a Tax Break for the Wealthiest July 2, 2025
  • U.S. Supreme Court’s Decline of Iowa Case Bolsters Local Control July 2, 2025

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