Remove Acre Remove Industrial Agriculture Remove Marketing
article thumbnail

Opinion: The US Doesn’t Grow Enough Food – But We Could

Modern Farmer

Despite having nearly a billion acres of prime farmland and a population of only 330 million people, the U.S. agriculture system, often claimed to be able to feed the world, can no longer feed its own population. She has over a decade of experience in food and agriculture policy reform and market development.

Food 121
article thumbnail

On the Ground with the Farmers Producing Antibiotic-Free Meat

Modern Farmer

Nearly four decades ago, Ron Mardesen and his wife Denise stopped using antibiotics on their hog farm, A-Frame Acres, in Elliot, Iowa. As the owner of a multi-generational farm, Mardesen has seen industrial agriculture and factory farming take increasing control over meat production in the last few decades.

Cattle 130
Insiders

Sign Up for our Newsletter

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

article thumbnail

Opinion: To Find the Future of Food, We Need to Look to the Past

Modern Farmer

Perennial wheat, marketed as Kernza, doesn’t have enough gluten to make bread or pasta; robot-milking systems don’t allow for pasture feeding, requiring cows to remain in barns year-round for the system to be profitable. A closer look, though, shows that most of these techno fixes have serious downsides.

Food 139
article thumbnail

Black Earth: A Family’s Journey from Enslavement to Reclamation

Civil Eats

Patrick Brown, who was named North Carolinas Small Farmer of the Year by North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University this year, grows almost 200 acres of industrial hemp for both oil and fiber, and 11 acres and several greenhouses of vegetablesbeets, kale, radishes, peppers, okra, and bok choy.

article thumbnail

‘An Insane Amount of Water’: What Climate Change Means For California’s Biggest Dairy District

Modern Farmer

After a winter of record snow in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, a sudden warm spell melted the lower reaches, unleashing nearly 40,000 acre-feet of water —a volume equal to more than a tenth of Las Vegas’ annual supply—in 48 hours. His 580-acre farm grows enough forage to supply the herd, so “I’m good with where I’m at,” he adds.

Farming 87
article thumbnail

The Sustainable Soil-ution Beneath Your Feet

Sustainable Harvest International

“ “My philosophy has always been that the health of soil, plants, animals, people, and the environment is one.” ” — Rattan Lal, professor of soil science + 2020 World Food Prize Laureate Conventional, or industrial, agriculture uses chemicals to defend crops from weeds, certain insect species, and diseases.

Compost 59
article thumbnail

The Future of Resilient Agricultural Communities in California Is Alive in Allensworth

The Equation

Over the next 15 years, California will have to repurpose about 1 million acres of cropland, most of it out of the 5.5 million irrigated acres in the San Joaquin Valley. Farms that use extractive agriculture usually are outside the official community line, and therefore they pay no taxes to the communities they pollute.