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Land Line: Invisible Hand, Price-Fixing, Oat Mafia, Bird Flu, Profitable Conservation, SNAP, Compost, Farm Subsidizers

The Invisible Hand, Elasticity, and the Vanishing Farmer (5/7/25) Writing on the AGDAILY website, farmer and international consultant Ben Henson describes how the traditional building blocks of the American agricultural economy are being undermined by unprecedented consolidation in farming. Highlights: One basis of economic theory is “inelastic” versus “elastic” demand for products. Food is considered…  Read More

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

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

The ‘Big Reveal’

The Coronavirus Pandemic Unmasks a Brutal, Multinational Food & Farming System that’s as Unsustainable as the Economic Model that Created it As the coronavirus disrupts “normal” life in America and worldwide—and we ride the rapids of shifting strategy and messaging from the White House, its cabinet, and Congressional leaders — the pandemic also shines light…  Read More

Local Democracy Challenge Launched by LSP in MN

Initiative Aims to Increase Citizen Engagement with Local Officials & Processes in Non-election Years

MONTEVIDEO, Minn. — The Land Stewardship Project (LSP) today launched an initiative in Minnesota communities aimed at increasing citizen engagement in the local democratic process. The Local Democracy Challenge, which runs through Nov. 26, outlines six areas of direct action that citizens can take in a non-general election year. The public is invited to participate…  Read More

Privacy Policy

This Privacy Policy explains how the Land Stewardship Project (“we,” “our,” or “us”) collects, uses, and discloses information about you when you access or use our websites, mobile sites, and mobile applications that link to this Privacy Policy (collectively, the “Site”). By accessing or using the Site, you consent to the data practices described in…  Read More

LSP Minnesota 2018 Legislative Session Wrap-up

From the beginning of the 2018 Minnesota Legislative session, it was clear that corporate interests and their legislative allies were pushing for special treatment at the expense of rural communities, family farmers and Minnesota values. As an example, six days into the session, Dr. Marin Bozic, a dairy economist at the University of Minnesota, testified…  Read More

Crop Insurance: A Safety Net Becomes a Threat

When it comes to the crop insurance sweepstakes, southwest Minnesota farmer Darwyn Bach is a winner. But he concedes that his good fortune presents a quandary, since the way the program is implemented these days creates significant losers: the soil, beginning farmers and Main Street businesses that suffer when the number of families in a…  Read More

Land Line: Soil Health, Hunger, Govt. Accountability, Ag Recession, Slaughterhouse Speeds, Checkoffs

Improving Soil Health Not Just Feel-Good Endeavor (4/1/25) Indiana Prairie Farmer describes how Rodney Rulon’s 30-year soil health journey utilizing no-till and cover cropping is paying dividends not just environmentally, but economically as well. Highlights: The National Association of Conservation Districts and the Soil Health Institute performed a budget analysis on 29 farms across the…  Read More

The Devil’s in the Details

Regenerative Ag Can Help Bring Our Dysfunctional Relationship with Phosphorus Back into Balance

In the early 2000s, I wrote a series of Land Stewardship Letter articles about a generic environmental impact statement study that was done on Minnesota’s livestock industry. The final report had an interesting finding related to phosphorus, a key source of crop fertility: small livestock farms had a medium phosphorus shortage of 17 pounds per…  Read More

Oats & The 3-Legged Stool of Farm Resiliency

This Humble Grain Represents One Commonsense Approach to Diversifying the Landscape

In case you haven’t noticed, the humble oat is having a bit of a moment. After decades of declines in oat plantings in Minnesota, acreage increased this year. Market demand for the small grain is up, a group of farmers are attempting to pull together funding for a major processing plant in southern Minnesota, and…  Read More