Planting in the Dust was written in 1985 by the late Nancy Paddock, an award-winning poet and former editor of the Land Stewardship Letter. This one act monologue features a farm woman named “Annie,” who speaks passionately about the land abuses she is witnessing in her community. During the 1980s, LSP used various actors to… Read More →
The $1.7 Trillion Landlord: New USDA Data Reveals the Shifting Face of Ownership (3/12/26) Farm Journal reports on new USDA showing a 47% surge in rented farmland value over the past decade, even as the footprint of available acreage shrinks. With $1.7 trillion in assets now held by a shifting demographic of landlords, the landscape… Read More →
Bridge Payment Rates Are Here — But Are They Enough to Help Your Bottom Line? (1/7/26) Writing for Farm Progress, Joshua Baethge describes concerns that the aid package being issued to farmers in February to help them deal with damage caused by the trade war will not make up for years of mounting losses in… Read More →
As a farmer and entrepreneur, John Strohfus sees the production of food-grade crops as a key opportunity for regenerative farmers to forge links in a value chain based on building healthy soil. More Information • Jan. 27, 2026, LSP Workshop — “Beyond Exports: Rebuilding Local Markets” • Field Theory Foods • LSP Small Grains Web… Read More →
Alan Jostock uses the kind of diversity that builds soil health as a kind of insurance policy for his farm. That means meshing his crop and livestock enterprises in a way that they prop each other up through thick and thin. More Information • Jan. 27, 2026, LSP Workshop — “Beyond Exports: Rebuilding Local Markets”… Read More →
Farmer and small grains marketer Matt Kruger sees a rotation based on raising food grade crops as a way for farmers to get rewarded for building soil health. It’s also a way to fight the only thing he truly hates. More Information • Jan. 27, 2026, LSP Workshop — “Beyond Exports: Rebuilding Local Markets” •… Read More →
This report, created in partnership with the University of Minnesota, describes the findings of an assessment of the Land Stewardship Project’s Soil Health Program. This information was collected in 2024 and 2025 using an online and mail survey of program participants, as well as two focus groups with LSP Soil Hubs in Plainview and Austin,…
Every year during Minnesota’s Give to the Max day, Land Stewardship Project highlights the work of several BIPOC-led or rural-based organizations and asks our members to also support the work of these partners. This year, in light of continuing food insecurity and lingering effects of the recent government shutdown, LSP staff wanted to shout-out organizations… Read More →
Government Shutdown Ends, Farm Bill Programs Extended (11/13/25) On Nov. 12, President Donald Trump signed into law a measure to end the longest-ever government shutdown after 43 days, providing full funding for the USDA for fiscal 2026, and ending a legal battle over November’s SNAP benefits, reports several news sources. Highlights: By getting full-year funding… Read More →
Local control provides local governments the ability to make decisions that benefit their communities. It can happen at the township, county, city, or regional level. The decisions that are made can impact everything from local policy to how public funds are spent. Right now, the federal government is considering changing the rules for local decision-making… Read More →
