The Equation

JUNE 5, 2023

Unhealthy soil can be the end of a civilization Not being able to grow grain because of unhealthy soils translated into not being able to feed armies. We are allowing our groundwater (which is our water savings account) to be depleted to grow cash crops for wealthy corporations.

Agriculture 83

Agriculture Agriculture Fertilizer Food 83

Civil Eats

FEBRUARY 27, 2024

So, the program pays a farmer $55 an acre to grow their cover crops to at least 12 inches; at 24 inches, they receive an additional $20 per acre. Planting a cash crop within a living stand of cover crops, a technique called “planting green,” garners a farmer an additional $10 an acre.

Crop 140

Crop Farming Farming Acre 140

National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition

JULY 14, 2023

Some farmers and researchers like those running the Wisconsin Integrated Systems Cropping Trial are developing increasingly sophisticated polyculture with two or more crop species in the same field at the same time. Rotating crops also significantly reduces pests and diseases.

Agriculture 87

Agriculture Agriculture Pasture Crop Rotation 87

Agwired

SEPTEMBER 22, 2023

wheat production and supplies is improving the outlook for profitability among grain elevators that store wheat. The event highlights the harvest of its cash crop, peanuts, which has big potential across the globe by providing a sustainable and nutritious product and fighting malnutrition. A modest rebound in U.S.

Manufacturing 45

Manufacturing Supply Chain Seeding Harvest 45

Daily Yonder

APRIL 11, 2023

One way to reduce agricultural chemicals is planting cover crops in the Fall after the cash crop is harvested. Winter cover crops could mean using less fertilizer and herbicide in the Spring. Grain prices began to fall and crops weren’t worth what farmers put into them.

Farming 52

Farming Farming Acre Seeding 52

Food Environment and Reporting Network

DECEMBER 7, 2022

A review from earlier this year found that only a third of published studies in which researchers compared fields that were cover-cropped with those that weren’t reported significant gains in soil carbon. And a study published last month illustrated one major reason why farmers may be reluctant to plant cover crops.

Agriculture 52

Agriculture Agriculture Crop Cash Crop 52

Civil Eats

JULY 9, 2024

In fact, the two practices that dominate current markets—no-till and cover crops—require herbicides to succeed in the way they’re practiced on most commodity farms. Farmers use herbicides to kill weeds that they could otherwise till under and to kill cover crops before planting a cash crop.

Pesticide 145

Pesticide Marketing Seeding Crop 145

Civil Eats

JANUARY 23, 2024

Without access to markets and appropriate infrastructure (think: organic grain elevators and slaughterhouses) growers can’t fetch added premiums for sustainable practices. As a result, smaller producers often face greater hurdles in adopting any practices that sit outside the mainstream.

Agriculture 142

Agriculture Agriculture Ranching Food 142

Food Environment and Reporting Network

FEBRUARY 15, 2024

If tobacco built the farm over generations, it’s no longer a dependable source of the kind of income his grandfather earned decades ago, much less its best cash crop. The tobacco side of the farm has grown from 50 acres to 150, and the farm also produces soybeans and grain crops on another 850 acres. Photo by John West.

Farming 89

Farming Farming Acre Crop 89