When farmers challenged what Kris Nichols had learned from her college textbooks, the soil microbiologist didn’t dismiss them — instead, she dug deeper into the world beneath our feet. (1 of 2 parts) More Information • Ear to the Ground No. 388 Interview with Kris Nichols (2 of 2 parts) • LSP’s Soil Builders’ Web… Read More →
How a small, rural school district is taking a trial run at sourcing food from local farmers. More Information • MDA Farm to School & Early Care Programs & Grants • Report: Building the Farm to School Network in West Central Minnesota • LSP’s Community-Based Food Systems Web Page • Ear to the Ground 385:… Read More →
Jeanine Bowman believes having locally produced food on her school’s menu shouldn’t be a special occasion — it should be a daily part of nourishing kids while supporting the farm economy. More Information • MDA Farm to School & Early Care Programs & Grants • Report: Building the Farm to School Network in West Central… Read More →
Ag antitrust expert Austin Frerick sees the current food system as a mechanism for modern robber barons to treat rural communities as mere “extraction colonies.” But, he argues, changing how we eat isn’t enough — we need to disrupt how power is distributed all along the food chain (2 of 2 parts). More Information •… Read More →
Sonja Trom Eayrs started out writing about her own family’s fight against factory farms. She ended up telling a larger story of corporate capture of rural communities (1 of 2 parts). More Information • Sonja Trom Eayrs’s website • View video of Nov. 4, 2025, LSP Event Featuring Sonja Trom Eayrs & Austin Frerick: “Big… Read More →
Chris MacLeod came to Mill City hoping to source local grain while pursuing his passion for baking. When confronted with the reality of the export-driven commodity system, he doubled down on connecting with local farmers. More Information • Laune Bread • Baker’s Field Flour & Bread • LSP’s Small Grains Web Page • Ear to… 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 →
