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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

♦

“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

♦

“(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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June 2025

Saturday June 21

1:00 pm – 4:00 pm
Farm-Scale Deep Winter Greenhouse Tour
Saturday June 21
1:00 pm – 4:00 pm
Farm-Scale Deep Winter Greenhouse Tour
Owl Bluff Farm, 12314 County Road 4 Houston, MN 55943

The University of Minnesota Extension Regional Sustainable Development Partnerships (RSDP) and Owl Bluff Farm will co-host an open house to celebrate the completion of the state’s first farm-scale deep winter greenhouse. The event, held on the farm about 45 minutes east of Rochester, is free and open to the public. RSVPs are required at z.umn.edu/OwlBluffOpenHouse.

Wednesday June 25

2:00 pm – 5:00 pm
LSP-PFI Grazing Field Day at Hoosier Ridge Ranch
Wednesday June 25
2:00 pm – 5:00 pm
LSP-PFI Grazing Field Day at Hoosier Ridge Ranch
Hoosier Ridge Ranch, 15998 Wabasha County Rd 26, Altura, MN 55910, USA

Over the last 50 years, livestock have left many farms. Eric Heins is doing the reverse: bringing cattle – and their poop, pee and hooves – back to his land. Come see how Eric is using his Normande-shorthorn crosses in a variety of grazing situations. During this Land Stewardship Project-Practical Farmers of Iowa field day, you can view permanent pasture, where Eric (like everyone) is battling the cool-season grass takeover. You’ll also learn how Eric is using his cattle in cover crop mixes, prairie and woodlands.

Since purchasing the farm in 2020, Eric has converted the cropland to pasture. He also custom-farms a diverse rotation of crops, covers and small grains on neighboring farms, including an established prairie on Iowa Department of Natural Resources land. A possible bonus: Eric is hoping to have virtual fence collars by the time of the field day, but no guarantees!

A meal featuring Hoosier Ridge Ranch burgers will follow the field day.

See & Discuss

  • Cash-flowing the conversion to pasture on owned versus rented cropland
  • Stockpiling pasture for winter grazing
  • Mechanical buckthorn clearing for silvopasture
  • Grazing agreements on DNR prairie and neighboring cropland
  • A sudangrass mix after a canning pea crop
  • An extended rotation with oats, barley and Kernza

For details and to register, click here.

Friday June 27

9:00 am – 3:00 pm
Agrivoltaics Field Day
Friday June 27
9:00 am – 3:00 pm
Agrivoltaics Field Day
West Central Research and Outreach Center, 46352 MN-329, Morris, MN 56267, USA

Join University of Minnesota Extension for presentations and solar site tours at the West Central Research and Outreach Center. You’ll gain a comprehensive understanding of the benefits, considerations and opportunities of farming using solar energy. Session topics include cattle and sheep solar grazing, solar site forages, grain crops under solar panels, and solar developer perspectives. Register here. Can’t attend the field day? Check out the July 22 agrivoltaics webinar on growing forages and grains.

Saturday June 28

4:00 pm – 8:00 pm
LSP's Boots & Roots: A Celebration of Land & People
Saturday June 28
4:00 pm – 8:00 pm
LSP's Boots & Roots: A Celebration of Land & People
Dream Acres, Co Hwy 8, Spring Valley, MN 55975, USA

Join Land Stewardship Project members and supporters to kick-start the Driftless summer with an evening of good food, good music, and good times. We’ll have activities for all ages that will get you out in nature, exploring the connection between our region’s farms and your community’s food, land, and water. Bring a side or dessert to share for dinner, and the Dream Acres wood-fired oven will provide locally-sourced pizzas and flat breads. Dinner will be followed by live music and contra dancing by the Crater City String Band.  

To reserve a spot, click here.

Camping sites are available at nearby Masonic Park and Forestville Mystery Cave and Lake Louise State Parks. Camping at Masonic is rustic,first-come-first-serve, free, and does not require a reservation. Fillmore County, who manages the park, only asks that you call the dispatchers at507-765-3874 when you arrive with your vehicle information and phone number in case of emergency. State Park reservations cost $25 a night and can be made online.

July 2025

Wednesday July 9

8:00 am – 10:00 am
Risk to Resilience Climate Cohort
Wednesday July 9
8:00 am – 10:00 am
Risk to Resilience Climate Cohort
Online

Farming has always required adaptability, and today’s changing weather patterns are creating new challenges and opportunities. The Land Stewardship Project, in collaboration with University of Minnesota Extension, has created a resilience-focused program that gives commodity and small grain growers the opportunity to join a cohort with other like-minded farmers and learn how to prepare their operations for the future. At this Risk to Resilience cohort, you will learn:

  • How changing weather patterns in the Upper Midwest are likely to affect your farm. 
  • How you can prepare a plan that protects your farm from a changing climate.
  • How to improve your planning skills and meet with experts for opportunities to grow climate resilience  on your farm.
  • How to build community with fellow farmers interested in creating operations that are sustainable and resilient in the long term.

Program Details:

  •  Online format — join from your home or farm.
  •  Four sessions, 10-15 hours total investment — built for busy schedules, beginning July 2025. We’ll pause workshops for small grains harvest and resume in August 2025.
  • A $250 stipend will be provided to participants who attend the sessions and provide feedback on experience and content.

Dates of the Risk to Resilience Sessions:

  • Wednesday, July 9, 8 a.m.-10 a.m.
  • Wednesday, July 16, 8 a.m.-10 a.m.
  • Harvest Break
  • Wednesday, August 20, 8 a.m.-10 a.m.
  • Wednesday, August 27, 8 a.m.-10 a.m. 

To register, click here. 

View Full Calendar

Recent Posts

  • Land Line: Erosion Wake-up, Agrivoltaics, Farm to School, Deep USDA Cuts, Factory Dairy Fight, Farm Aid, New Meat Plant June 9, 2025
  • ‘Returning Cattle to the Land’ Field Day June 25 in Altura June 3, 2025
  • Make Your Voice Heard at Upcoming NRCS-SWCD Meetings June 3, 2025
  • Rolling Out the Welcome Mat for New Neighbors May 30, 2025
  • Land Line: Modern Dust Bowl, Corporate Indifference, Farmers’ Market Stores, Soybean Giant, SNAP & Local Foods, Carbon Markets, Farm Economy’s Twin Tale May 28, 2025

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