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Land Line: Grasslands & Carbon, Local Foods, AU Cap, Fertilizer Prices, Dry Wells, Methane Digesters, Forever Green

June 7: An LSP Round-up of News Covering Land, People & Communities

By Brian DeVore
June 7, 2022

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Claim: Grazed Grasslands Trump Cover Crops on Long-term Carbon Sequestration

(6/5/22) The Food and Environment Reporting Network reports on research showing that rotationally grazed pastures sequester more carbon than annual cropping systems. An ongoing 29-year-old field experiment in Wisconsin shows that perennial pastures managed with rotational grazing accumulated 18% to 29% more soil organic carbon than annual cropping systems, even when cover crops and minimum tillage were used in the annual systems.

LSP’s grazing web page includes several resources for farmers looking to link livestock production, soil health, and economic viability. Check out LSP’s recent Myth Buster on carbon credits.

Land Stewardship Project Looking to Revitalize Local Foods Economy in the Upper Minnesota River Valley

(6/1/22) According to the West Central Tribune, the Land Stewardship Project is launching an effort in western Minnesota to map out the local food assets of the region while rebuilding and re-energizing a regional food systems network. Farm census data show that the number of farms that direct-market local foods in the region has been slowly growing, from 81 to 101 in the past few years, according to the Tribune. Local foods generated $612,000 in sales annually in the region, or just 0.5% of the $90 million that local residents spend on food for home preparation, according to an analysis by Ken Meter with the Crossroads Resources Center. Just boosting those sales by another percent or more could circulate an additional $1.2 million in the region, according to LSP’s Scott DeMuth.

For more on LSP’s regional foods work, see our web page.

County Board Sticks by Animal Unit Cap

(6/1/22) A push to reconsider Winona County’s limit on feedlot size was rejected by the County Board recently, according to the Winona Post. County Board members Steve Jacob and Marcia Ward proposed reconsidering the animal unit cap, which limits farms to no more than 1,500 animal units or 1,071 dairy cows. There has been a push to increase or even eliminate the cap in recent years as a result of pressure from Daley Farm, which wants to expand its operation to nearly 6,000 animal units despite widespread local opposition. Supporters of the cap, including LSP members who live in the county, say smaller farms and smaller quantities of manure reduce the risk of nitrate pollution in an area where groundwater is vulnerable and many rural wells are already contaminated. Mega-livestock CAFOs also threaten the economic viability of smaller farms.

In a new video, LSP members talk about why they are fighting to keep Winona County’s land, water, and communities from being harmed by a mega-dairy expansion. Check out more details on this fight at the Winona County Stewards web page.

Big Oil Wants New York’s Cow Manure

(5/25/22) Eight dairy farms in New York are producing pipeline-quality methane from manure, or soon will be, according to New York Focus. “Environmental experts worry this handful of farms are at the leading edge of a boom that subsidizes poor manure management practices and could promote the reckless expansion of large-scale factory farming,” reports Focus. And the state may be overcounting the climate benefits of manure biofuel as a mechanism to reach its greenhouse gas reduction targets — a miscount that will only grow as the industry expands.

In 2020, the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission approved CenterPoint Energy’s proposal to create an infrastructure for supplying biogas generated from manure, among other waste products. A recent LSP Myth Buster tackles the claim that methane digesters on large CAFOs are a good public investment.

The Summer Minnesota’s Wells Dried Up

(5/21/22) The 2021 drought in Minnesota tool a toll on the aquifers that feed many of rural Minnesota’s wells. As a result, that summer the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources fielded the most complaints over well interference in 40 years of record keeping, according to the Star Tribune. Many of those complaints were the result of large cropping operations using high capacity wells to supply irrigation water.

LSP members and staff successfully fought for drought relief during the recent session of the Minnesota Legislature. For details on drought relief support as well as assistance with this spring’s storms that’s now available, check out LSP’s latest action alert. A recent Land Stewardship Letter article describes the link between soil health and a field’s ability to store water efficiently. Another LSL article reports on what some vegetable producers are doing to make their farms more resilient when faced with the impacts of climate change.

Price of Fertilizer on the Steep Rise — Farmers Unsure Who, What’s to Blame

(5/4/22) By the end of April the price of fertilizer was $1,090 per ton, the highest it’s been since 2008, reports the Star Tribune. Industry officials say the costs are rooted in a “perfect storm” of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war in eastern Europe, supply-side logjams and inflation, according to the Star Tribune. However, farmers also suspect that fertilizer companies are taking advantage of the situation and exercising some good old-fashioned price gouging.”They’re charging two times what’s logical for the product,” Northfield, Minn., farmer Mike Peterson told the newspaper.

LSP is currently conducting research that could help farms generate their own fertility via the Johnson-Su Bioreactor system. For details, check out this Land Stewardship Letter article. LSP is also pushing for a 2023 Farm Bill that will, among other things, address consolidation in the farm input industry. See our Federal Policy page for details.

Growing a New Future for Farming

(5/2/22) As part of its “Visionaries” series, the New York Times profiled Donald Wyse, a University of Minnesota scientists who has helped launch the Forever Green Initiative. Forever Green is helping develop cover crops and other plants that can keep the soil protected year-round and add diversity to the corn-soybean dominated landscape.

During the past several legislative sessions, LSP has helped garner funding for Forever Green. For a complete wrap-up of the 2022 legislative session, click here. Various episodes of the Ear to the Ground podcast have described extensively how farmers in Minnesota are utilizing one product of Forever Green research: Kernza.

 

Category: Blog
Tags: animal unit cap • carbon sequestration • Daley Farm • drought • factory farms • fertilizer • Forever Green • grazing • local foods • methane digesters • regional foods

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 LSP’s Brian DeVore.

Quotes of the Day

“Our best and maybe only opportunity to really help mitigate climate change in our soils is with grazed grasslands.” — University of Wisconsin researcher Randy Jackson, talking about the carbon sequestration potential of rotational grazing

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“Polluters benefit from that transaction, corporations benefit, but not the climate.” — Brent Newell, former attorney for Public Justice’s Food Project, talking about the push to produce methane from CAFO manure

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“(There’s) a feeling like not much is going on right now, not connected.” — LSP organizer Scott DeMuth, describing how some view activity around local and regional foods

 

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Upcoming Events

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October 2025

Tuesday October 7

6:30 pm – 8:00 pm
Book Event: We Can Do Better: Collected Writings on Land, Conservation, and Public Policy
Tuesday October 7
6:30 pm – 8:00 pm
Book Event: We Can Do Better: Collected Writings on Land, Conservation, and Public Policy
The Landing Market, 211 College Dr, Decorah, IA 52101, USA

The Johnson Center for Land Stewardship Policy is excited to share that one of our its primary pillars of work — a published collection of Paul Johnson’s writings —  is set for release on Oct. 2.  The book features a brief biography and a discussion of Paul’s ideas within the historical and future contexts of private lands conservation. Details on the event are available here.

For details on We Can Do Better: Collected Writings on Land, Conservation, and Public Policy click here.

 

Friday October 10

8:30 am – 3:00 pm
Weaving a Wider Community: Seeing & Countering Racism in Our Backyard
Friday October 10
8:30 am – 3:00 pm
Weaving a Wider Community: Seeing & Countering Racism in Our Backyard
111 N 1st St, Montevideo, MN 56265, USA

Join LSP and CURE for a community event at the Land Stewardship Project office in Montevideo (111 N. First St.), from 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m., on Friday, Oct. 10. This event includes lunch catered by El Mana; please register by Oct. 3 to be included in the food count.

You can RSVP here.

The Racial Equity Conference, organized by the Greater Minnesota Partnership of the Facilitating Racial Equity Collaborative, has been specifically designed to bring engaging content to local communities through a unique pairing of online speakers and in-person local sessions. The morning’s online content will include a conversation focused on seeing and countering racism in rural communities, moderated by Eryn Gee Killough, paired with two outstanding keynote speakers, Jenna Grey Eagle and Ron Ferguson, who have experience working in rural communities. 

This online content will be exclusively available to local community gatherings. Each gathering will gear their in-person activity to their specific community with the goal of extending the impact of the conference to others throughout the following year. Join LSP and CURE for this western Minnesota gathering, or if a different location works better for you, check out all the local gatherings on the FREC site,

If you have any questions, do not hesitate to reach out. LSP’s Nick Olson can be reached via e-mail at nicko@landstewardshipproject.org.

9:00 am – 3:00 pm
Intensive Small-Scale Market Gardening Bus Tour
Friday October 10
9:00 am – 3:00 pm
Intensive Small-Scale Market Gardening Bus Tour
Leatherdale Equine Center, 1801 Dudley Ave, St Paul, MN 55108, USA

Explore profitable small-scale farming (1–5 acres) and soil care. Visit a cooperative incubator farm and a thriving suburban market garden. Learn about cover crops, reduced tillage, high tunnel soil health, and support for growers.

This is the second tour in a three-part soil health bus tour series. Participants can sign up for just one, two, or all three tours. Register at https://z.umn.edu/vegetablebustours. The cost is $15 (flat fee, covers 1, 2, or 3 tours). There are more details in the attached flyer.

Saturday October 11

11:00 am – 2:00 pm
LSP-COPAL Visita a la Granja | Farm Tour
Saturday October 11
11:00 am – 2:00 pm
LSP-COPAL Visita a la Granja | Farm Tour
36919 County 57 Blvd, Dennison, MN 55018, USA

Building off the success of last year’s farm event with COPAL in Austin, Minn., this year Land Stewardship Project and COPAL members and supporters will gather at the Young-Walser Family Farm in Dennison, Minn. for a festive and delicious farm tour on Saturday, Oct. 11, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. We invite you to come and meet new folks, learn new skills, and try new food! 
 
This year’s COPAL-LSP farm event offers a little something for everyone: 
 
🍯 Honey sampling and the opportunity to purchase from Homestead Honey Farm. 
 
🍎 Apple cider pressing and tasting. (BTW, we’re still looking for an apple press if you or a farmer friend have one nearby we could borrow for this event!) 
 
🌽 Nixtamalization workshop and fresh, homemade tortillas, made with corn grown by LSP and COPAL members at the Young-Walser Family Farm! 
 
🍅 Salsa making and cricket-eating competitions! Yes, you heard that right —we’ll have the opportunity to sample crickets, a delectable crispy and savory snack commonly enjoyed throughout Mexico and Central America. Stay tuned for details on how to enter either competition. 
 
🥾 A tour of the Young-Walser farm, nestled in the beautiful Sogn Valley not far from Cannon Falls, Minn. Enjoy a tromp through the corn and squash fields and hike in the nearby woods. 
 
🌮 A shared meal and opportunity to hear from LSP and COPAL organizers about our participation in the Immigrant Defense Network. 

Let us know you can make it to ensure we order enough food and supplies! Carpools from Minneapolis and Rochester will be available to all attendees. 

________________________________________________

¡Únete a LSP + COPAL para nuestro recorrido anual comunitario en la granja!
Un espacio divertido para tod@s donde exploraremos la agricultura, aprenderemos sobre el campo y participaremos en actividades prácticas. ¡Uno de los momentos más especiales será hacer tortillas frescas junt@s!

Compartiremos un delicioso almuerzo comunitario, preparando tacos en estilo potluck (tipo convivio). Te invitamos a traer un platillo o acompañamiento para compartir.

También estás invitado@ a llegar temprano (desde las 9 AM) para ayudar a cosechar calabazas que sembramos. Puedes llevarte algunas a casa, y el resto se donará a un banco de alimentos local.

El Land Stewardship Project (LSP) es una organización aliada de COPAL que trabaja por sistemas alimentarios y agrícolas más sostenibles y justos. LSP y COPAL están unidas en su lucha por instituciones democráticas sólidas, comunidades saludables y acogedoras, y una ética de cuidado hacia la tierra y las personas que nos alimentan.

Tuesday October 14

11:00 am – 12:00 pm
Birds as Pest Control Allies on the Farm
Tuesday October 14
11:00 am – 12:00 pm
Birds as Pest Control Allies on the Farm
Online

This 10-lesson Wild Farm Alliance virtual course teaches agricultural professionals and farmers how to support beneficial birds and manage pest birds on farms. By learning how to assess the farm’s avian needs and opportunities, farms can be designed to provide for a diversity of beneficial birds. 

If pest birds are a problem, they can be discouraged with specific practices during the shorter periods when they cause damage. The sessions cover the latest research, tools and resources, and are given by experts in avian pest control, entomology, ornithology and conservation. While many topics and species are specific to the Midwest, most of the principles discussed are applicable across regions. 

Continuing Education Credits have been requested and are expected to be approved from American Society of Agronomy.

For details and to register, click here. 

The Course Schedule:

LESSON 1

Why Birds Belong on the Farm: Biodiversity, Pest Control & A Thriving Landscape

Tuesday, September 23, 2 p.m. CT


LESSON 2

Birds as Pest Control Allies on the Farm

Tuesday, October 14, 11 a.m. CT


LESSON 3

Birds in the Balance: Pest Control Services Across Crop Types

Tuesday, November 4, 11 a.m. CT


LESSON 4

Integrating Habitat into Croplands: Prairie Strips and Bird Conservation

Tuesday, December 2, 11 a.m. CT


LESSON 5

Birds on the Farm: Balancing Biodiversity and Food Safety

Tuesday, January 13, 11 a.m. CT


LESSON 6

Beyond the Crop: Birds, Biodiversity, and the Power of Edge Habitat

Tuesday, February 3, 11 a.m. CT


LESSON 7

Bridging Forestry, Farming, and Habitat

Tuesday, February 24, 11 a.m. CT


LESSON 8

Perennial Pathways: Agroforestry for Birds and Biodiversity on Farms

Tuesday, March 17, 11 a.m. CT


LESSON 9

Birds on the Range: How Grazing Practices Shape Habitat for Grassland Species

Tuesday, April 7, 11 a.m. CT


LESSON 10

Birds at Risk: How Pesticides Shape Safety on Agricultural Lands

Tuesday, April 28, 11 a.m. CT

View Full Calendar

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