As food riots in places like Haiti and Egypt are reminding us, there are many, many hungry people in the world. Supporters of industrialized agriculture have argued for years that the only way to feed billions of mouths is by raising crops and livestock in large-scale specialized systems reliant on petroleum-based fertilizers and pesticides. Diversified agricultural systems—organic in particular—are a luxury the world can ill afford at a time when the population has surpassed six billion people, say scientists like Nobel Prize-winning plant breeder Norman Borlaug. John Emsley, a chemist at Cambridge University, has called organic farming “the greatest catastrophe that the human race could face,” according to World Watch magazine. Ouch. Well at least the good professor doesn’t beat around the bush. The basis for such sharp criticism is that organic crop production, for example, simply cannot produce high yields because it relies on natural sources of fertility such as animal manure. But a lot of false assumptions and lack of data are the basis for such arguments. (more…)

Early this morning—during those vampire hours between bar close and breakfast—members of the Congressional Farm Bill conference committee agreed on a 2008 Farm Bill. While a final price tag and other details need to be finalized before both bodies of Congress pass it and send it on to President Bush, this is a major step in the direction of finally getting U.S. food and farm policy set in place for the next five years. The President has threatened to veto the Farm Bill, charging, among other things, that it gives too much money to too few fat cat landowners. Indeed, many farm and rural organizations, including the Land Stewardship Project, are criticizing Congress for making only minor changes to the failed and unjust commodity crop subsidy system, and taking almost no action at all to stem corporate consolidation of our nation’s farm and food system. But if this highly flawed proposal is killed, that may mean living with the current ag law for the foreseeable future—a piece of policy that’s even worse, believe it or not. That’s reason enough to pass this thing and get it done with. But we shouldn’t accept this legislation just because it’s long overdue (remember when it was called the 2007 Farm Bill?). There are several sound policies contained within this beast that emerged out of the Beltway at dawn. Here are three reasons why the President should sign the bill when it hits his desk: (more…)

Here in Minnesota the fishing opener and preparation for corn planting often coincide—that’s why you won’t see many crop farmers wetting lines on Leech Lake come May 10. That’d be akin to seeing tax accountants whooping it up at Mardis Gras in February. It turns out corn and fishing have another connection, and this one is a little more insidious. Research out of Indiana farm country shows that the caddisfly, a key link in many a freshwater stream food chain, may face a serious threat from genetically engineered corn. Ironically, soon after reading the study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, I happened upon an Iowa Farmer Today cover story headlined: “Biotech crops may help environment.” The article went on to describe how the eco-angst that dogged GMO crops a few years ago may be a thing of the past. In light of the caddisfly study, that IFT headline may be a whole lot of wishful thinking. (more…)

The University of Minnesota announced earlier this week it has approved a plan that will create new resources and programs for sustainable and organic agriculture. This is the result of an overall increase in funding for agricultural research and outreach that the University received from the 2007 Minnesota Legislature. (more…)

Soil scientist Gyles Randall calls it the “broom handle” effect. That’s when a corn field has been shaved clean: stalks, leaves, the whole nine yards — all the way to the stubble, leaving a field with a sparse, bristly look. There’s a whole lot of bare soil between those broom handles, and not much organic matter. “That scares the bejeebers out of me,” Randall, who regularly monitors cropland erosion and fertilizer runoff in southern Minnesota, told me recently. Crew-cut cornfields are just one possible response to an inescapable fact: we simply cannot raise enough corn in this country to meet our seemingly insatiable thirst for fuel. (more…)

There’s nothing like a call-in radio show to bring them out of the woodwork. Or, in the case of young farmers who are excited about producing healthy food in a sustainable manner, out of the rich soil of Minnesota. When the Land Stewardship Project’s Farm Beginnings program was the subject of discussion on Minnesota Public Radio’s Midmorning program Thursday, the switchboard lit up with testimonials from all over the state. It was a celebration of love — love for the land and for good food. (more…)

Groundwater—that stuff that trickles through sand, gravel and cracks beneath our feet, that provides 70 percent of the drinking water in this state but is often out-shined by all those beautiful lakes and rivers—is in the news these days. People are not only starting to worry about what’s in it, but how much of it is left. This attention to water is important because of one simple, hard truth: they ain’t making any more of it. Basically water is the ultimate recyclable product, and what we do to it now—quantity and quality wise—will show up centuries from now. That’s why it’s good to see the Minnesota Environmental Quality Board is convening an interagency working group to examine how the booming ethanol industry, among other things, is affecting groundwater. While working on a groundwater article for the current issue of the Minnesota Conservation Volunteer, I talked to rural residents and hydrologists who already know what impact ethanol plants can have on water in a localized region. One problem is most of those plants are being built in parts of the state that are corn rich, but water poor. But one bit of good news related to groundwater that I stumbled across while researching the story came out of Rochester. There, officials have figured out how to remove dangerous levels of one common pollutant from water without breaking the bank. A bonus of this system is that it relies on protecting natural landscapes in the area—one of those win-win situations people like so much. Once the EQB gets done looking at what thirsty industries like ethanol are doing to our groundwater, they and others concerned about the future of the wet stuff would do well to examine Rochester’s experience. It’s a lesson in learning from history and using that education to ensure a better future. (more…)

Looking for a thin bit of hope that spring is indeed just around the ice-encrusted corner? A Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) farmer told me today that she just started veggie seedlings in her greenhouse. That’s all I need to believe that yes, our soil will thaw, the ice sheet will recede, and the sun will shine brightly enough to produce food again. Joining one of the several top-notch CSA farms that serve the region is an excellent way to get access to that food. According to what I’m hearing, consumer sign-ups at area CSA operations are starting earlier that usual—perhaps this harsh winter has given us a particularly sharp appetite for something other than tennis ball tomatoes. So don’t wait until the snow is gone—it may be too late. Check out LSP’s 2008 Twin Cities Region CSA Directory and start dreaming of fresh, sustainably-produced food.

Can we produce clean biofuels on working farmland in a sustainable manner? RIM-Clean Energy shows real potential for making just such a scenario possible. A simple way to describe this program is that it would support farmers who grow native perennials such as prairie grass for bioenergy. But there’s much more below the surface. Such a program could serve as the seed for a “multiple benefits” agricultural system: besides cheap feed for livestock, these native perennials can protect soil and water while producing wildlife habitat and sequestering carbon. And by the way, they could be the basis for a cellulosic biofuels revolution here in Minnesota. RIM-Clean Energy was authorized by the Minnesota Legislature last session, but now comes the hard part: priming the financial pump. Funding for RIM-Clean Energy is already starting to make its way through the 2008 Legislature. Let’s hope lawmakers see what an economic, agronomic and environmental payoff such an initiative could provide decades down the line.

May corn futures on the Chicago Board of Trade closed at $5.35 per bushel today. There’s nothing wrong with rural America that high corn prices won’t fix, right? I read that price quote soon after finishing an LSP Ear to the Ground podcast on a rural economic development model that has little to do with betting the farm (and the land) on one or two raw commodities. Give it a listen (episode 47) before you call up your broker and buy corn futures on the CBOT. (more…)