rural economic development

Rolling Out the Welcome Mat for New Neighbors

LSP Members Use 'May Day Baskets' to Show Support for Immigrants in their Communities

The Land Stewardship Project is an organization that believes we will not have a truly sustainable farm and food system until it is sustainable for everyone. That point was reinforced recently when we gathered input from our members and allies while putting together our current long range plan. That’s one reason LSP is working closely…  Read More

Ear to the Ground 373: Know Your Neighbors

These are tumultuous times for immigrants, but COPAL’s Ryan Perez sees hope in grassroots organizing and making basic, human-centered connections. More Information • COPAL-Minnesota • Radio Jornalera • LSP’s Justice & Stewardship Web Page • LSP’s Long Range Plan: 2025-2030 You can find LSP Ear to the Ground podcast episodes on Spotify, Pandora, iTunes, YouTube, and…  Read More

Land Line: Modern Dust Bowl, Corporate Indifference, Farmers’ Market Stores, Soybean Giant, SNAP & Local Foods, Carbon Markets, Farm Economy’s Twin Tale

Dust Storm Friday Was City’s Worst Since 1930s, Weather Service Says (5/18/25) Block Club Chicago reports that on May 16 the city experienced its worst dust storm since the Dust Bowl of the 1930s. The dust originated from central Illinois farms. Highlights: A little before 7 p.m. on May 16, a wall of dust slammed…  Read More

Alan Perish’s Passion for Local Democracy

 'If you can’t control things locally, somebody else is going to control them for you...'

When Alan Perish passed away May 14, we lost a stalwart advocate for  family farming and local democracy. Alan, a fourth-generation farmer, milked cows in central Minnesota’s Todd County for many years and he was a longtime Land Stewardship Project and Minnesota Farmers Union member. Over the years, I had several opportunities to talk with…  Read More

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

Hopping into the Lunch Line

LSP & Hutchinson Public School Host Legislators & Local Officials for a Farm to School Meal to Show the Program in Action

On April 15, the Land Stewardship Project saw farmers, community members, agency staffers, nonprofit folks, legislators, school district staff, and champions of Farm to School engage in this farm-to-fork initiative in the most hands-on way possible — by breaking bread together over school lunch trays at the Hutchinson High School. This diverse group of people…  Read More

MDA Announces 2025 Recipients of the AGRI Farm to School & Early Care Programs

Sign the Petition Asking the Legislature to Approve Additional Funding for this Project

    The Land Stewardship Project congratulates the 2025 recipients of the Minnesota Department of Agriculture’s AGRI Farm to School and Early Care Programs. This includes K-12 school districts and early care centers that received reimbursement grants, as well as family daycare providers participating in the MDA’s first-ever Local Tots Cost-Share Program. Grantees span the…  Read More

Join Us for a May Day Week of Action

The Land Stewardship Project knows that immigrants are an important part of our farm economy, and have been throughout history. That’s why we’re inviting you to join LSP and the Immigrant Defense Network this week at one of four powerful teach-in opportunities in the Minnesota towns of Montevideo, Minneapolis, Mankato, and Rochester. We will learn…  Read More

Land Line: Mental Health & Land Health, Ag Income Decline, Canadian Eggs, Tariffs & Fertilizer, Banned Verbiage, Weather Disaster, Community Hub

Farmers Face One of the Highest Rates of Suicide. This Social Worker Believes the Solution is Buried in Their Land (4/10/25) The Guardian newspaper describes how a social worker in Kansas has developed the LandLogic Model, a new way to train healthcare providers that uses farmers’ relationship to their land to identify and treat depression,…  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