Latest News From Conservation

Wayne Fredericks calls himself an “accidental conservationist” when Mother Nature stepped in nearly 20 years ago and upended his I’ve-always-done-it-this-way-plans.

2022 ASA Conservation Legacy Awards

“Agriculture is one of the key solutions in a more carbon positive future,” says Mitchell Hora.

When Tom Perlick’s father unexpectedly passed away, Perlick knew he had to keep the farm in the family. Perlick soon blazed a conservation trail that proved the naysayers wrong.

Aaron Krueger's conservation practices have created more resiliency on his land and reduced input use. He expects to gain additional rewards during his second phase of management and practice changes.

Producers turn to their peers for insights on new practices and technologies while balancing environmental stewardship with daily priorities such as labor availability and succession planning.

Grassroots Carbon has provided payment to 10 Texas ranchers for their adoption of reversative grazing pastures which have resulted in nature-based, measured, verified and certified carbon credits.

Leasing ground for hunts and other recreational uses can sometimes help you get additional benefits from marginal ground or wooded acres.

According to Brett Bruggeman, president of WinField United, the opportunities around carbon markets are bringing a stratification in the ag retail business.

These charter members bring a range of expertise and the drive to share the financial and ecological benefits of carbon programs. 

America’s Conservation Ag Movement has a new opportunity for 10 farmers (two each) based in Arkansas, California, Indiana, Maryland and Nebraska.

A new report shows over one-third of the food produced in the U.S. is never eaten. Not only does this waste resources used to produce food, but it also creates a myriad of environmental impacts, EPA said. 

Understand how and why you are paid for carbon.

It's easy to knock something you know little or nothing about. Farmers who are working to adopt conservation practices on their operations face ridicule routinely. Yet their efforts now could help us all in the future.

Understand your options in the carbon market arena.

You can find many carbon footprint calculators online. They range from simple and rudimentary to increasingly complex.

Rob Myers brings his expertise in soil health, conservation and crop diversification to help farmers, landowners and ag retailers create a resilient agriculture industry.

Despite terms, ag and food largely united on stewardship priorities.

Experimenting with regenerative practices.

The need to educate consumers and advocate for modern agriculture’s leadership role in achieving global food security is more important than ever.

As you plan for the New Year, how are you thinking about integrating conservation ag objectives into your list of priorities?

As you evaluate input options for next spring, here are five steps to size up whether a biological might be a good fit for your farm.

The initiative is designed to help create a unique digital carbon footprint measurement to drive more sustainable supply chains and mitigate the impact agriculture has on the environment.

A USDA-National Resources Inventory report shows soil erosion rates on cropland decreased 35% from 1982 to 2017. Even so, some members of the agricultural community say rates are unsustainable for crop production.

There were three lesson from the first year, according to Jason Weller: 1. Retailers need a return 2. Farmers need support 3. Data lift is significant

The company says its program will help farmers reduce their CO2 emissions and will be launched in phases starting next year.

Oetting Homestead Farms of Concordia, Missouri, located in Lafayette County, has been selected as the recipient of the 2021 Missouri Leopold Conservation Award®.

Feed additives, metabolic pathways and methane-reducing gene traits all are part of new research efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from dairy cows.

A series of extreme rains prompted the Clark family to change the way it operates their farm and begin integrating more regenerative practices.

In most scenarios, companies want to incentivize growers by paying them to use regenerative farming practices, especially no-till and cover crops, on ground where they haven’t used such practices previously.

The first-of-its-kind, two-year pilot project will quantify and certify biodiversity credits. The financial incentive will average around $100 an acre for growers who develop or enhance pollinator-friendly habitat.

McDonald’s is committing $5 million and partnering with AgMission, a global collaboration to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in agriculture and to develop and implement climate-smart farming solutions.

On Tuesday, the United States and the United Arab Emirates used COP26 climate talks to launch efforts to channel funding into making agriculture resilient to climate change, as well as to cut its emissions.

For Indiana farmer Tom McKinney, adding solar to his farm was a “no brainer.” The output from the installation meets his drying demand for half a million bushels.

“This marks day one of the beginning for how we can measure how these practices are being used,” TFI CEO Corey Rosenbusch says.

The two go hand-in-hand in farm country.

The two go hand-in-hand in farm country.

The cooperative and its partners are using sustainability as a starting point for conversations about dairies’ plans for business growth and the future of the industry.

Global commodities trader Cargill Inc is launching a carbon farming program for the 2022 season that will pay growers for production practices that lower emissions and capture more climate-warming carbon in soils.

Cristian Barcan: “Feeding the world more sustainably is about continuous improvement. Every farm has a unique sustainability journey that has defined their success as a contributor to the food supply chain thus far”

“There’s real science around soil health, and this is a way retailers can have meaningful impact without directly selling anything,” says Dr. Jennifer Wells, Senior Agronomist and Account Manager at Truterra.

After participating in four carbon market pilot programs in the past two years, Kyle Mehmen has learned a lot about the opportunity, and perhaps even more about what not to do. 

Soil carbon sequestration can become an important mitigation strategy if there is agreed upon, credible, cost-effective and consistent measurement, reporting and verification behind the credits, according to researchers.

The proposal would add a surcharge to carbon-heavy imports.

As growers wade through the ever-deepening amount of carbon information available in the marketplace, they are asking for answers to these common questions.

When the Borg family added chickens to their diversified beef and row-crop farm, they had enough opportunity to bring their daughters back into the business and start building a sustainable future for their operation.

“We like to say that the program isn’t about the cow, but the how,” says Lauren Miller, VP Carbon Footprint Solutions at Grassroots Carbon. “Our aim is to scale up the restoration of prairie grasslands..."

Research from the 2021 Farm Journal Technology Survey reveals insights on farmers’ attitudes and opinions on data collection and carbon markets.

CRP acres often follow market forces, according to research from Farmer Mac. As such, today’s high cash grain prices may dissuade producers from enrolling acreage in CRP programs.

Zach Johnson and Mitchell Hora explore the roles of finance and government in building the markets with Cristian Barcan, vice president for sustainability for Rabo Agrifinance, and Iowa Secretary of Ag Mike Naig.