Fostering an ethic of stewardship for farmland, promoting sustainable agriculture and developing healthy communities.
Jan. 15: An LSP Round-up of News Covering Land, People & Communities
Bill Gates: America’s Top Farmland Owner
(1/15/21) Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates and his wife Melinda Gates are now the largest private farmland owners in the U.S., according to The Land...
This week in Washington, D.C., we faced multiple attacks on our democracy. Elected leaders sought to overturn the will and the votes of the people. White militants lead a violent insurrection against our government. And again, we witnessed that when white militants commit violence, police stand by. None of these attacks are acceptable and those responsible must be held...
Jan. 7: An LSP Round-up of News Covering Land, People & Communities
As the Livestock Industry Touts Manure-to-Energy Projects, Environmentalists Cry ‘Greenwashing’
(12/7/21) Inside Climate News reports that as utilities, oil companies, and...
For months, Land Stewardship Project members have been preparing to hit the ground running during the 2021 Minnesota legislative session to advance rural economic justice across the countryside. The 2021 session begins Tuesday, Jan. 5, and we need you with us. When we come together across zip codes, class, gender, and race, united in our values and vision, we have the power to shape our...
For over two years, Land Stewardship Project members in southeastern Minnesota’s Winona County have been fighting for the future of their community. The threat they are faced with is in the form of a massive expansion proposed by Daley Farms, which sits just outside the town of Lewiston.
Daley Farms...
The promoters of “meat” that does not come from living, breathing animals go to great lengths to differentiate their products from the “veggie burgers” that started popping up in the grocery aisle decades ago. The fake meat industry’s target customer is not the vegetarian or vegan. These products — also called “alt-meat,” “cultured...
Dec. 18: An LSP Round-up of News Covering Land, People & Communities
National Soil Erosion Rates on Track to Repeat Dust Bowl-era Losses Eight Times Over
(12/16/20) Unhealthy farming practices and more extreme weather spurred...
Dec. 11: An LSP Round-up of News Covering Land, People & Communities
Dean Foods Seeks to Get Back Money Paid to Dairy Farmers Before Bankruptcy
(12/10/20) Hundreds of dairy farmers nationwide fear they could owe substantial sums to the...
Dec. 7: An LSP Round-up of News Covering Land, People & Communities
More Hogs Coming to Northwest Iowa
(11/30/20) Economists say exploding foreign pork demand will result in an industry-wide expansion in the Upper Midwest, from finisher barns to even new processing plants, reports...
Nov. 29: An LSP Round-up of News Covering Land, People & Communities
Why Non-operating Landowners Need to be Part of the Conservation Dialogue
(11/22/20) Non-operating landowners, otherwise known as NOLOs, are generally in favor of...
Nov. 20: An LSP Round-up of News Covering Land, People & Communities
Grassland 2.0 Aims to Replace Soy and Corn Farming with Perennial Pasture in the Upper Midwest
(11/11/20) With $10 million in funding from the USDA,...
Nov. 13 : An LSP Round-up of News Covering Land, People & Communities
Crop Diversification Can Help Environment Without Sacrificing Yields
(11/12/20) A new study shows diversifying agricultural systems beyond a narrow selection of crops leads to a...
Nov. 6 : An LSP Round-up of News Covering Land, People & Communities
Relay Cropping Helps Northeast Iowa Farmer Reach a Lofty Goal
(October 2020) Northeastern Iowa farmer Loran Steinlage is using "relay cropping" to keep living roots in the soil...
Staff from the Land Stewardship Project's Bridge to Soil Health Program have been getting out and visiting farms the past few months. These visits are primarily to: network and meet with farmers in our Soil Builders' Network, see what practices people are trying out on the landscape, determine what farmers want...
Unearthing the Links Between Soil Health, Farm Profits & Water Quality
Building soil health may be about bugs, bacteria, and biology, but justifying farming practices that nurture such a natural process often comes down to a human-generated gauge of success: how much money does it put (or keep) in the bank? On a sunny day in late June, Martin Larsen addresses...
Oct. 30: An LSP Round-up of News Covering Land, People & Communities
Oct. 23: An LSP Round-up of News Covering Land, People & Communities
Connecting Farmers Through Music, Land Stewardship Project Commissions Conservation Songs
(10/18/20) Kaitlyn Riley at WIZM Radio describes how LSP...
Oct. 15: An LSP Round-up of News Covering Land, People & Communities
World Food Prize Laureate Advocates for Re-Carbonizing Soil to Protect Food Production
(10/13/20) Soil scientist Rattan Lal, the 2020 Word Food Prize laureate, makes the case that...
Oct. 9: An LSP Round-up of News Covering Land, People & Communities
Minnesota Department of Transportation rethinks no-spray ditch program after yanking signs
(10/9/20)...
Oct. 5: An LSP Round-up of News Covering Land, People & Communities
U.S. farm landscapes could be reshaped by changing climate – research
(10/5/20) Climate change could render swathes of agricultural land largely useless for farming in...
A Farm Transfers Ownership & a Farmer Transfers into a New Role
What’s that stuff in soil that’s supposed to provide humans a sense of wellbeing? You know, like a protozoa-based version of Prozac? Emmalyn Kayser is trying to come up with the name on a recent March afternoon as she and Chris Burkhouse squat in a high tunnel and busily weeded spinach seeded the...
Sept. 30: An LSP Round-up of News Covering Land, People & Communities
Mercaris: Organic Production Continues to Grow
(9/28/20) The U.S. harvested organic field crop area will exceed 3.4 million acres over the 2020-2021 marketing year, which is an increase of 4% over the...
Sept. 28: An LSP Round-up of News Covering Land, People & Communities
MNDOT abruptly ends 25-year program with organic farmers
(9/25/20) Noah Fish reports in the Grand Forks Herald on how organic farmers and the Land...
Sept. 25: An LSP Round-up of News Covering Land, People & Communities
Very large farms collect one-fifth of USDA’s coronavirus payments
(9/23/20) Chuck Abbott reports on Agriculture.com that the government's COVID-19 payments to...
On April 27, meat giant Tyson Foods took out a full-page advertisement in major newspapers that carried an alarming message. “The food supply is breaking,” it said. The ad went on: “We have a responsibility to feed our...