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The Devastating Impact of CRP on Our Rural Communities
The Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) has been an extremely popular agricultural program that has been around for 35 years. Landowners are paid to enroll their land into this federal program to supposedly “conserve” it for the future. To qualify, landowners have to take cropland and plant it to some kind of grass that prevents erosion; […]
Regenerative Rainmaking
There is an interesting and thought-provoking quote from Masanobu Fukuoka, a Japanese farmer and philosopher renowned for his natural farming, that is quite pertinent to climate resiliency. The author of The One Straw Revolution, Fukuoka states, “It was in an American desert that I suddenly realized that rain does not fall from the heavens – […]
Nature’s History Matters
At Understanding Ag and the Soil Health Academy, we teach a concept called Historical Ecological Context. Basically, the concept involves examining what an ecosystem was like at least 400 to 500 years ago along with the influences on that ecosystem, and then determining what that ecosystem can be like today under regenerative management. We try […]
The Farm Bill’s Impact on Land Prices
The Farm Bill’s Impact on Land Prices By Eric Fuchs, Understanding Ag, LLC. I often wonder what the true value of farmland is in the U.S. I hear instances where Iowa or Illinois dry-land farm ground is going for $20K-plus an acre, and I wonder how that pencils out? I saw instances where pastureland in […]
The Hidden Hand Of U.S. Farm Policy
Earlier this summer, I was given a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to become a consultant with Understanding Ag, LLC. As part of my training, I have been shadowing others within the organization as they consult with clients from around the country. Do date, I have had the opportunity to travel to South Dakota, Iowa, and Kansas. Coming […]
Practical Genetics: Knocking out the Props
By Allen Williams, Ph.D. Genetic selection is something that is often complicated and confusing for many livestock producers. There are numerous trait measurements that we try to decipher, including breeding values and EPD’s that we pour through and try to interpret. We like to use weighted or adjusted values for various traits. In the past […]
The Accrued Benefits of Adaptive Grazing
The problems of many current conventional grazing systems can be avoided by ecologically sensitive management of ruminants across the landscape. Wild ruminants, by the hundreds of millions, have existed for millennia on the North American landscape and are responsible for the tremendous fertility and soil carbon that amazed our ancestors as they moved across this […]
How the Weedkiller Glyphosate is Destroying Our Health
How the Weedkiller Glyphosate is Destroying Our Health by Stephanie Seneff Introduction Glyphosate is the most common herbicide in the world. The United States has been using glyphosate in agriculture since 1974, and it is also popular as the formulation Roundup to control weeds in residential maintenance of lawns. Starting in the late 1990s, a […]
Artificial Animals – Part 3: Rancid Fats, Harmful Additives, & the Controversial Plant Blood
Sara Keough MS, CNS, LDN – Integrative Eco-NutritionistUnderstanding Ag, LLC Technical Advisor “I do think all rich countries should move to 100% synthetic beef. You can get used to the taste difference, and the claim is they’re going to make it taste even better over time.” -Bill Gates, 2021 Six years prior to the quote […]
Growing Regeneratively in Chihuahua, Mexico’s Arid Climate
Written by Ron NicholsPhotos by Ernie Friessen During a Soil Health Academy School in Chihuahua, Mexico, Gabe Brown handed Ernie Friessen a copy of his book, “Dirt to Soil.” The 29-year-old farmer took it home where he and his wife, Aracely, began reading it. They were engrossed by the book’s storyline of crop failures from […]
Adaptive Stewardship – What does it Really Mean?
Within Understanding Ag, we teach what we term Adaptive Stewardship. We believe this to be an integral part of regenerative agriculture because without a good understanding of stewardship, we cannot be good practitioners of regenerative principles. The dictionary defines stewardship as “the responsible overseeing and protection of something considered worth caring for and preserving” or […]
The 2021 Food Scene:
In my last article, I wrapped up 2020 with a synopsis of major events that affected both farmers and consumers. This month, I want to focus on what the 2021 food scene will look like and how it may impact pastured protein producers and regenerative farmers. 2021 Food TrendsIn December 2020, Food & Wine magazine […]