Just when you think the facts and figures around federal subsidized crop insurance can’t get any more outlandish, new numbers emerge exposing the out-of-control spending and lack of accountability for this area of farm policy. Earlier this month, USDA released the most recent data on crop insurance costs. It’s ugly: the federal government anticipates doling… Read More →
This fall, LSP uncovered serious errors in the process of environmental review that was being done on proposed frac sand mines in Minnesota’s Winona County. Eventually, the county acknowledged that the problems we pointed out needed to be corrected, and started the environmental review process over in November. Unfortunately, the county’s second attempt at environmental… Read More →
The call came in the night. On the end of the line was the panicked voice of Tyler Carlson, a 26-year-old beginning farmer who was starting a grazing operation in west-central Minnesota. It seems that while making a long-distance move of the cowherd he had just purchased a few days before, a baby calf had… Read More →
On Aug. 28, Land Stewardship Project board member Tex Hawkins spoke to a busload of LSP members and friends who visited a farm near Dodge, Wis., to witness firsthand the effects of frac, or silica, sand mining on a neighboring piece of property. I live in Winona. I’m on the LSP Board now, and have… Read More →
Minnesota Farmers Seek State Aid as Foreclosure Crisis Looms (8/8/25) Financially strapped Minnesota farmers are asking the state to intervene with their lenders at a midsummer rate not seen in almost a decade, reports the Star Tribune. Highlights: In June, 197 farmers filed notice for help from the University of Minnesota Extension’s Farmer-Lender Mediation program.… Read More →
One farmer says he benefits from grazing publicly-managed wildlife habitat. But what does a natural resource professional think about bringing bovines into a natural biome? More Information • Hoosier Ridge Ranch • LSP’s Grazing & Soil Health Web page • MN DNR Whitewater Wildlife Management Area You can find LSP Ear to the Ground podcast… Read More →
From crunching the numbers to developing relationships with public and private landowners, Eric Heins of Hoosier Ridge Ranch isn’t afraid to question the status quo when it comes to grazing livestock. More Information • Hoosier Ridge Ranch • LSP’s Grazing & Soil Health Web page You can find LSP Ear to the Ground podcast episodes… Read More →
2025-2026 Farm Beginnings Class LSP is now accepting applications for its 2025-2026 Farm Beginnings class session. For details, click here. ♦ ♦ ♦ In a sense, when the brothers Andy and Ben Klein enrolled in the Land Stewardship Project’s Farm Beginnings course in 2023, it was a return engagement for at least one of them.… Read More →
LEWISTON, Minn. — Farming has always required adaptability, and today’s changing weather patterns are creating new challenges and opportunities. Commodity crop and small grain growers are invited to participate in a summer program where they can learn how to prepare their operations for unpredictable, extreme weather events. This program is being offered by the Land… Read More →
ALTURA, Minn. — How one farm is utilizing rotational grazing and diversity to return cattle to the land will be the focus of a field day Wednesday, June 25, from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m., at Hoosier Ridge Ranch in Altura (15998 County Road 26). This field day, which is sponsored by the Land Stewardship… Read More →
