An Innovative Farming System Requires Innovative Training One sign that you’re a solid employee is that the boss hates the idea of you walking out the door, never to return. So let’s consider the case of Ryan Heinen, who has worked on the west-central Minnesota dairy farm of Nate and Angie Walter for the past… Read More →
SAINT PAUL, Minn. — As traditional local foods and direct-to-consumer markets have become increasingly saturated, a number of farmers and buyers in Minnesota are working together to re-shape the local foods economy. The Land Stewardship Project’s (LSP) Farm Viability Steering Committee is offering an “Innovative Markets Forum” on Thursday, March 7, from 4 p.m. to… Read More →
‘Our Farm Bill’ Campaign Concludes for Now The membership of the Land Stewardship Project (LSP) launched the “Our Farm Bill” campaign in 2016 as an ambitious grassroots effort of family farmers, rural communities and urban allies to change the direction of federal policy. It was a campaign based on the vision that our public policy… Read More →
When I heard that Land Stewardship Project board member Loretta Jaus was being recognized by the White House this week as a “Champion of Change for Sustainable and Climate-Smart Agriculture,” I couldn’t think of a more deserving recipient. From the first time almost a decade ago that I visited the western Minnesota dairy operation she… Read More →
Opportunity Knocks for Oats in Minnesota (1/28/26) Morning Ag Clips reports that interest in returning oats to Minnesota crop rotations is increasing as a result of a new processing facility being built and research related to the soil health benefits of planting the small grain. Highlights: A new, $68 million food-grade oat mill is expected… Read More →
On April 13, Hope Community intern Taya Shultz lead a cooking class at Hope’s community kitchen. “The topic was breakfast. We made almond milk, vegetable breakfast smoothies and buckwheat muesli pancakes,” Taya told me. Hope Community is a place-based community development organization that is entrenched in the Phillips Neighborhood, one of the most economically challenged… Read More →
What’s up with all the backlash against urban food production? Google the phrase “urban farming illegal” and you’ll see what I mean. Communities in Minnesota and across North America are struggling with what to do when some energetic entrepreneurs begin raising produce in their yards on a scale that goes beyond planting a few tomatoes… Read More →
For an artist, it’s always nice to get a little public recognition—it helps make up for all those hours spent alone in the studio. So when Deborah Foutch’s piece, “Soil Horizon,” won a blue ribbon at the Minnesota State Fair in 2015, she was thrilled. But even more exciting was that the artwork—it uses various… Read More →
There are less than eight months before the current Farm Bill expires. Now is the time to demand BOLD solutions, especially BOLD climate solutions in the next Farm Bill. Take Action TODAY! The 2023 Farm Bill is being written now, and it needs to center farmer solutions when it comes to the climate crisis. Farmers… Read More →
Alex joined LSP’s soil health team in July 2018 and lives, works, and plays in the Driftless countryside with her family. At LSP, Alex spends her days leading the soil health team and organizing with regional farmers and partners to establish soil health practices as the new norm for farming. Alex grew up as a… Read More →
