A few years ago, Brad and Shelley Schrandt faced a dilemma: should they keep their dairy herd at around 20 cows for a few more years while working off the farm, or should they expand enough to justify quitting those town jobs? They went for the expansion in an attempt to simplify their life. Shelley, who was pregnant at the time, was helping milk cows on a neighboring farm while working at a bank, and Brad was a night mechanic for a waste management firm. “Those were some long days,” Shelley told me, rolling her eyes. “Yeah, those were the days,” Brad quipped. (more…)

What’s up with all the backlash against urban food production? Google the phrase “urban farming illegal” and you’ll see what I mean. Communities in Minnesota and across North America are struggling with what to do when some energetic entrepreneurs begin raising produce in their yards on a scale that goes beyond planting a few tomatoes in pots. When confronted with a new idea—or at least an idea that’s new to them—local officials give many off-the-cuff reasons for banning it. But in the case of urban farming, let’s be honest: at the root of many of these concerns is that a produce garden is not Kentucky bluegrass, and we fear what we don’t know. (more…)

What’s a sure sign that legislators are not carrying out the wishes of the general public? Answer: when their actions have to be carried out in secret, behind closed doors, in the dark of night. That’s literally what happened Tuesday night-Wednesday morning when the Minnesota Legislature passed the Environment Finance Bill. As part of the budget negotiations to end the government shutdown, Republican leaders insisted that language be included in the finance bill which weakens environmental standards for factory farms. The Land Stewardship Project and our allies have opposed this proposal in the past and it failed to pass the normal legislative committee process this year and last year due to strong public opposition. So why not sneak it through when the public is locked out of the process? (more…)

While sitting in a western Wisconsin high school auditorium listening to farmers and other rural residents discussing urban sprawl the other evening, I was struck by an epiphany of sorts: the argument for saving farmland near our cities and suburbs has evolved beyond the “let’s save our pretty viewscapes” phase. Protecting prime farmland from the parking lot and the subdivision has become a matter of basic food security and sustainable economic development. (more…)

While walking through a knee-high prairie planted on a central Iowa hillside Tuesday, I happened to look down. Trapped amongst all that vegetation was an impressive amount of rich, black glacial soil, the kind that produces record crop yields. And just a few feet away was the source of that soil: a soybean field planted in a no-till system. I was getting a firsthand look at how planting just 10 percent of a crop field to native prairie can reduce soil erosion by 95 percent. As you can hear on LSP’s most recent podcast, this is a prime example of how a little nature can go along way in solving soil erosion and water quality problems. (more…)

In 1989, I worked for a farm magazine that claimed global climate change, if real, would actually be good for agriculture since rising carbon dioxide levels would act as some sort of mega plant growth promoter. During the past seven days, I’ve seen firsthand what happens when extreme weather—which many scientists say is an offshoot of climate change—hammers Midwestern agriculture. Guess what: drowning crops have a hard time breathing in CO2. (more…)

By Anna Cioffi, LSP Policy Organizer
As you read this, central Minnesota farmer and LSP member Nolan Lenzen is in Washington, D.C., carrying a simple, but critical, message: agriculture is a growing and vibrant sector of our nation’s economy, and it provides many opportunities for young producers such as himself. Yet farming is also one of the most difficult occupations to enter. Limited access to markets, hyper land price inflation, high input costs, and a lack of sufficient support networks are just a few barriers new agricultural entrepreneurs face. It doesn’t need to be this way. (more…)

For Hugo Community Food Shelf Director Mary Schaefer, eating healthy is an option that should be available to everyone, no matter what their income level. That’s why she’s excited about Fresh Green Buck$, a new initiative that gives grocery shoppers a chance to put fresh fruits and vegetables straight into the hands of food shelf clients in Washington County year-round. (more…)

By Bobby King, Land Stewardship Project

The 2011 Minnesota legislative session ended at midnight on May 23 with township rights and local control strong in Minnesota—a testament to how seriously this state’s farmers and other rural citizens value their right to determine the future of the communities they live in. (more…)

Another rainy Friday: a good time to contemplate what trying to produce food on an industrial scale has done  to our natural plumbing—and how it pays back the favor. (more…)