Path to Final Farm Bill More Unclear Than Ever Today the U.S. House passed a “partial” Farm Bill (HR 2642) on a vote of 216 to 208. House leadership separated nutrition programs and funding from the Federal Agriculture Reform and Risk Management Act, which failed in the House last month. This allowed them to advance… Read More →
What is the most critical discussion that needs to take place to ensure a sustainable food and farming system long into the future? Is it one on policy, farming techniques, green technology, consumer preferences or soil fertility? No. It’s the conversation that takes place between Nettie and Gerald during LSP’s play, Look Who’s Knockin’, which… Read More →
This winter, when you reach for a nice, perfectly-shaped tomato in the produce section of your local supermarket, think of Lucas Mariano Domingo. For two and a half years the Guatemalan lived in the back of a windowless box truck with three other men while he picked tomatoes in the fields surrounding the Florida community… Read More →
Paula Williams talks about why healthcare reform matters to LSP and its allies, and, after 15 years of hard work and organizing, what advances were made on the issue during a recent session of the Minnesota Legislature. More Information • LSP blog detailing recent healthcare wins at the Minnesota Legislature • LSP’s Healthcare Web Page • Ear… Read More →
FREEBORN COUNTY, Minn. — Small grains, cover cropping, and organic weed control will be the focus in July during a pair of Land Stewardship Project (LSP) soil health field days in Freeborn County. For both events, specialists from the Freeborn County Soil and Water Conservation District and the Rodale Institute will be on-hand to provide information… Read More →
Nearly seven years ago, northeastern Iowa farmer and Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) district conversationist, Todd Duncan, along with a group of local producers, started looking for tangible solutions to the erosion problems they were seeing on their farms. These farmers had already been implementing NRCS’s best management practices when it came to conversation, but… Read More →
When one sees the word “unambiguously” used in a carefully researched academic paper, it’s time to take notice. For example, a recent Journal of Policy Modeling study reports results that are “…unambiguously suggestive of a crop insurance policy regime that is biased in the direction of increasing consolidation in crop farming….” That conclusion is based on… Read More →
How One Farm’s Focus on Soil Health Helped Make Row-Cropping Viable…& Fun The economic benefits of building soil health are a balancing act between immediate payoff and delayed gratification. In an ideal situation, the source of those quick profits will set the foundation for a longer-term investment that pays dividends. For example, Dawn and Grant… Read More →
But A Divided Legislature Produced No Real Bold Steps Forward The Land Stewardship Project organizes for healthcare for all because we believe high-quality care is a basic need and something every person deserves, and because our current healthcare system that prioritizes corporate profits above all else is a major barrier to having thriving rural communities… Read More →
It has become far too common these days to open a newspaper or hear from a neighbor about another small dairy going under, whether it be from a labor shortage, slim margins on low milk prices, or the nonstop work of running a dairy single-handedly. I am a Land Stewardship Project soil health organizer, tasked… Read More →
