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Searched for: MFU Support of Fair Repair February 2023

Organizing Secures Key Wins for Rural Healthcare in 2023 Minnesota Legislative Session 

MinnesotaCare Public Option & Prescription Drug Affordability Board are Strong Steps Forward

By Paula Williams & Amanda Koehler
June 14, 2023

The Land Stewardship Project began organizing around healthcare in 2008 after hearing over and over again from our members that one of the primary barriers to getting into farming, or staying in it, is lack of access to affordable and useful health insurance. Farmers and other self-employed people do not have employer-based healthcare coverage without off-the-farm or…  Read More →

Protect & Expand Funding for Working Lands Conservation Programs in the 2023 Farm Bill

Don't Let Congress Raid IRA Conservation Funds

August 31, 2023

Farmers are uniquely positioned to both mitigate and build resiliency when it comes to climate change. Farmers are on the front lines of managing extreme weather events, emerging pests and disease, degraded topsoil, altered planting and harvesting timing, dwindling pollinator populations, and more. At the same time, small and mid-sized farmers are facing consolidation, financial…  Read More →

Priorities for 2026 Legislature: Soil, Water, Land Access, Consolidation, Farm to School

The Minnesota legislative session begins February 17.

By Laura Schreiber
January 8, 2026

When Minnesota lawmakers return to Saint Paul Feb. 17 for the start of the next state legislative session, Land Stewardship Project’s members and organizers will be active in pushing forward our values and priorities. Before we go into what issues we will be focusing on in 2026, I’d like to provide some political context and…  Read More →

LSP Legislative Update: Heading into the Final Days

Local Food, Land Access & Soil Health Proposals Still Alive

By Laura Schreiber
May 7, 2025

As the 2025 session of the Minnesota Legislature heads into its final two weeks — barring a special session —  proposals related to several Land Stewardship Project priorities remain alive. Both the House and Senate have passed their respective Agriculture Bills, and now the proposals head into the conference committee process — the system within which lawmakers…  Read More →

Land Line: Lost Horizon, Nitro Overload, Drugs & Bugs, Meatpacker Compensation, Food System Control, Giving Back Through CSA, Farms & Groceries

By Brian DeVore
February 28, 2021

Feb. 28: An LSP Round-up of News Covering Land, People & Communities New Evidence Shows Fertile Soil Gone From Midwestern Farms (2/24/21) National Public Radio reports on a new study showing the most fertile topsoil is entirely gone from a third of all the land devoted to growing crops across the upper Midwest. Highlights: The…  Read More →

Why LSP Stands With Our Immigrant Neighbors

If We Are to Succeed, Everyone Needs an Opportunity to Participate in Transforming Our Farm & Food System

By Scott Elkins
January 8, 2026

Periodically, I get this question from our members, allies, and the general public: Why is the Land Stewardship Project involved in supporting the immigrant community? What does standing with allied organizations as they speak out against unfair treatment of immigrants — documented and undocumented — have to do with our mission of fostering an ethic…  Read More →

2023 Farm to School and Early Care Bill Continues Positive Momentum in Minnesota

Introduced today, House Bill H.F. 2043 Lays Foundation to Meet Demand for Farm to School Initiatives

March 1, 2023

SAINT PAUL, Minn. — The Minnesota House Agriculture Committee will have a hearing today for Representative Kristi Pursell’s Farm to School and Early Care bill (H.F. 2043), with bipartisan support representing a step forward in supporting local food, schools and economies throughout Minnesota. The Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP) and the Land Stewardship…  Read More →

Farm Transition Profile: Full Circle

One LSP Course Helped Launch Melissa Driscoll & Jay Hambidge's Ag Career — Years Later, Another Helped Wrap It Up

By Brian DeVore
November 13, 2025

Note: LSP’s next Farm Transition Planning Course will begin meeting Jan. 27, 2026. For details and information on how to enroll, click here. Sometimes a successful farm transition requires a shoulder season — a period when the current owners are still present, still have their hands in the soil, so to speak, but the newbies…  Read More →

A Home Away From Home

When Melissa Driscoll Climbed Down the Ladder, She Reassessed Sustainability

By Brian DeVore
July 12, 2023

Every living thing needs a home — even ginger, tomatoes, and garlic. And southeastern Minnesota farmer Melissa Driscoll sees written contracts as handy and efficient vehicles for getting her produce to their final destination. An extensive use of forward contracts isn’t just good for business — it gives Driscoll the kind of peace of mind…  Read More →

Land Line: Senate Budget Bill, Who Owns Land?, Nitrates, Conservation Cuts, Immigration, Drought When Wet, Judging Soil, Sea of Grass

By Brian DeVore (editor)
July 1, 2025

Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Clears Senate, Sending it Back to House (7/1/25) Vice President JD Vance broke a 50-50 tie in the U.S. Senate today to pass President Donald Trump’s centerpiece legislation on tax cuts and spending, the 940-page “One Big Beautiful Bill,” reports Oklahoma Farm Report. In order to pay for spending on…  Read More →