Ear to the Ground 379: Proclaim Your Grain

Gilbert Williams is a pioneer in processing local grains for local markets. His advice? Go stand in the field, put your name on the package, and tell your story.

More Information

• Ear to the Ground 378 with Noreen Thomas
• Ear to the Ground 377 with Peter & Brittany Haugen
• Ear to the Ground 366 with Gary Zimmer
• Summary of “Bringing Small Grains Back to Minnesota” Networking Meeting on Aug. 2, 2025, in Madison, Minn.
• 2025 LSP Albert Lea Small Grains Workshop Presentations
• Meadowlark Farm & Mill

You can find LSP Ear to the Ground podcast episodes on Spotify, Pandora, iTunes, YouTube, and other podcast platforms.

**Gilbert Williams, a pioneer in local milling, speaks at an LSP small grains meeting in Madison, Minn.**

Upcoming Events

September 2025

Friday September 5

9:00 am – 4:00 pm: Soil Health Field Day on the Cotter Farm: Austin
Friday September 5
9:00 am – 4:00 pm
Soil Health Field Day on the Cotter Farm: Austin
50203 205th St, Austin, MN 55912, USA
Sign up today for a get-together down on Tom Cotter’s Farm. This field day brings together food companies, local farmers and other professionals in agriculture — a perfect opportunity for networking and discussion.
Hear from soil health experts, then board the Topless Bus to take a tour of Tom’s farm. A FREE TACO BAR LUNCH will featureTom’s own grass-fed beef, along with authentic, homemade tortillas and rice. Featured speakers include soil scientist Kris Nichols and agronomist Joe Ailts.

You can check out the field day flier here. For more details and to register, click here.

Saturday September 6

9:00 am – 5:00 pm: Soil & Food Health Field Day: Austin
Saturday September 6
9:00 am – 5:00 pm
Soil & Food Health Field Day: Austin
50203 205th St, Austin, MN 55912, USA
Details are here.

Monday September 8

7:00 pm – 8:30 pm: Anne Biklé in conversation with Ross Evelsizer: What Your Food Ate
Monday September 8
7:00 pm – 8:30 pm
Anne Biklé in conversation with Ross Evelsizer: What Your Food Ate
Pulpit Rock Brewing Company, 207 College Dr, Decorah, IA 52101, USA
Join Anne Biklé (co-author, What Your Food Ate: How to Restore Our Land and Reclaim Our Health) and NEIA RC & D Natural Resource Projects Director, Ross Evelsizer, for a conversation and Q & A session followed by a book signing. Everyone is invited to this free event sponsored by the Oneota Valley Literary Foundation, with support from Pulpit Rock Brewing and Dragonfly Books.

Details on the Sept. 8 event are here.

Tuesday September 9

9:00 am – 3:00 pm

'Growing Resilience' Field Day at Churchill Reserve Grass-Fed Beef

Tuesday September 9

9:00 am – 3:00 pm

'Growing Resilience' Field Day at Churchill Reserve Grass-Fed Beef

36001 63rd Avenue Way Cannon Falls, MN, 55009

Spend a day with Clean River Partners and farmers discussing their experiences with different conservation management practices as they navigate the challenges of making a livelihood, accessing land and markets, and dealing with unpredictable weather conditions.

Join farmers Bryan Lips (BT Farms), Wendy Johnson (Jóia Food & Fiber Farm), Todd Churchill (Churchill Reserve), Helen Forsythe (Feed the People Farm Cooperative), and more, to discuss topics like wide-row corn and cover crops, the Minnesota Agricultural Water Quality Certification Program, agroforestry, growing small grains, and prescribed grazing.

For more information and to register, click here.

Join with Google Meet: https://meet.google.com/sft-zqyb-qkm

Learn more about Meet at: https://support.google.com/a/users/answer/9282720

6:30 pm – 9:30 pm

The Ground We Share: Conversations on Soil, Food, and Health

Tuesday September 9

6:30 pm – 9:30 pm

The Ground We Share: Conversations on Soil, Food, and Health

Center for Faith and Life, 555 Luther Dr, Decorah, IA 52101, USA

6:30 p.m.-7:30 p.m.: Pre-Event: Doors open for interactive exhibits to experience soil, food, and human health:

Engage with soil health & water quality demonstrations (Regenerating Soil and Community Student/Faculty team)
Learn about regenerative agriculture practices (Winneshiek County Soil and Water Conservation District)
Experience and taste healthy food produced from the Driftless (Oneota Food Co-op)
Peruse and check out gardening, cooking, and health books (Decorah Public Library)
Connect with expertise elevating that food is health (Erin Meyer, MSFS RD)

7:30 p.m.: Presentation by Anne Biklé: Linking Soil Health to Human Health

Prelude: Dance performance by Luther College Orchesis Dance Group & faculty guests

Is it true that you are what you eat? Not entirely. The full story lies in how we grow the crops and raise animals that make their way into our bodies. Biklé will draw on her most recent book, “What Your Food Ate: How to Heal Our Land and Reclaim Our Health“, co-authored with her husband David Montgomery.

8:30 pm: Soil, Food, and Health Conversation and Q & A with an award-winning panel of local/regional soil and human health care providers

A panel of local regenerative farmers will present and take questions.

Details on the Sept. 9 event are here.

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