Caff

JANUARY 7, 2025

As a participant in the BIOS program run by the Community Alliance with Family Farmers, Russ collaborated with fellow orchard farmers to share best practices for ecological farming, furthering his commitment to environmental stewardship.

Farming 105

Farming Farming Ecology Orchard 105

Modern Farmer

MARCH 12, 2024

My Land Advocacy Fellowship with the National Young Farmer Coalition empowered me to share my experience of growing up on the family farm with my senators and representatives offices on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. Across the country, farmland is being lost to development at a rate of more than 2,000 acres per day.

Farming 103

Farming Farming Farmland Real Estate 103

Modern Farmer

SEPTEMBER 6, 2023

It’s even worse when the owners of large-scale farms don’t live in or meaningfully contribute to the community. Recognizing the value of farmland and the fact that, as a popular phrase goes, “they’re not making any more land,” investors are buying up agricultural acreage. Brooks grew up on a small family farm in rural Tennessee.

Agriculture 133

Agriculture Agriculture Ruralism Farmland 133

Trimble Agriculture

AUGUST 2, 2023

Farmland is disappearing and the average age of the farmer is on the rise—do you have a farm succession plan in place? This poses a serious threat to the future of American family farms and ultimately compromises our domestic food security. Over the last 75 years, 28 percent of agricultural land has been lost.

Farming 98

Farming Farming Family Farming Processing 98

Trimble Agriculture

FEBRUARY 28, 2024

Between the years 2017 and 2022, America lost almost 20 million acres of farmland. Despite this rapid decline, the average farm size increased five percent to 463 acres. This ag census data highlights the trend toward farm consolidation as more and more family farm operations are feeling the pressure to go big or get out.

Farming 59

Farming Farming Farmland Acre 59

Trimble Agriculture

SEPTEMBER 25, 2024

farmland that is rented or leased. At the same time, the number of farms and farmland in the U.S. lost nearly 142,000 farms from 2017 to 2022. During that same period, an estimated 20 million acres of farmland went out of production. Since 2002, there has been a steady increase in U.S. has been in decline.

Farmland 59

Farmland Finance Real Estate Ruralism 59

Food Tank

APRIL 29, 2024

Instead, the Wall Street Farm Bill directed most of the subsidies to incentivize overproduction of a handful of key commodities, particularly corn and soy. Under the New Deal Farm Bill, a farmer faced with low corn prices could switch to another crop or even idle a portion of farmland in exchange for financial support.

Family Farming 69

Family Farming Acre Farming Farming 69

National Young Farmers Coalition

JULY 20, 2023

The proposed $100 million of annual funding over ten years will complement the Department’s existing farm production and conservation programs, and be available to a wide variety of entities, such as tribes, municipalities, non-profits, and cooperatives. “The Young farmers desperately need access to quality, affordable farmland.

Farming 75

Farming Farming Farmland Ruralism 75

Civil Eats

OCTOBER 12, 2023

While these programs haven’t always been used to make farms climate resilient, they all have the potential to do so—and more funding and specific guardrails specified within the IRA would make that even more likely. Seth Watkins, a farmer from Clarinda, Iowa, was able to save his family farm with the help of conservation funding.

Farming 144

Farming Farming Family Farming Agriculture 144

Trimble Agriculture

JULY 17, 2024

The debate surrounding industrial agriculture and farm consolidation is complex and multifaceted. On one hand, industrial agriculture is criticized for contributing to the decline of small family farms and promoting unsustainable practices. Large-scale farm operations own 42 percent of U.S. farming sector was $543.1

Industrial Agriculture 52

Industrial Agriculture Agriculture Agriculture Finance 52

National Young Farmers Coalition

SEPTEMBER 28, 2023

The hearing covered various topics, including the lack of data on farmland tenure, foreign ownership of farmland, and rising land values driven by non-farming buyers. The Issue of corporate ownership of farmland and farm consolidation is very, very important. The Farmland for Farmers Act (S.

Farmland 45

Farmland Real Estate Supply Chain Agriculture 45

Food Tank

JULY 14, 2023

Steven says that this gave the Imhoffs the opportunity to invest in quality equipment that make other aspects of day-to-day farm life easier. The Imhoffs were also able to begin raising hogs for Niman Ranch using their current farmland and facilities, rather than investing in expensive conventional housing.

Farming 72

Farming Farming Ranching Farmland 72

Daily Yonder

FEBRUARY 16, 2024

Brooks Lamb is a writer, and the land protection and access specialist at American Farmland Trust. He grew up on a small farm in Marshall County, Tennessee, and lives in Memphis now. I should mention that our farm was, and still is, a family farm in the strongest sense. A childhood photo from the family farm.

Ruralism 117

Ruralism Farming Farming Agriculture 117

American Farmland

AUGUST 21, 2023

This region is one of the top producers of blueberries nationwide, as Michigan blueberries are grown, harvested, packed, and processed by 575 family farms annually. This year was the 60th anniversary of the National Blueberry Festival​ in South Haven, Michigan!

Family Farming 52

Family Farming Harvester Harvest Harvesting 52

Modern Farmer

JULY 14, 2023

Treehouse Almonds sources nuts from roughly 50,000 acres in California’s Central Valley, and Gardiner’s family farm provides about 20,000 of them. The farm has changed a lot since his grandfather ran it and grew tomatoes and potatoes. There’s also the loss of farmland due to a confluence of factors.

Orchard 74

Orchard Crop Family Farming Farming 74

Modern Farmer

FEBRUARY 26, 2024

According to the recently released 2022 Census of Agriculture , the largest four percent of US farms (2,000 or more acres) control 61 percent of all farmland. Similarly, in 2015 , 51 percent of the value of US farm production came from farms with at least $1 million in sales, compared to 31 percent in 1991.

Manure 86

Manure Farming Farming Production 86

Agwired

JULY 21, 2023

Senators Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and Chuck Grassley (R-IA) introduced bipartisan legislation to increase transparency and oversight of foreign ownership in the American agricultural industry. Youth members of Farmers Union from around the country participated in the 85th National Farmers Union (NFU) All-States Leadership Retreat.

Real Estate 40

Real Estate Farmland Lodging Seeding 40

Agribusiness Blog

MAY 11, 2023

Maybe you formed a joint venture or partnership to run crop production activities through or you farmland for family members through a crop sharing arrangement. These arrangements are common in family farm operations and may be based on generations of operating without formal agreements. If so, you aren’t alone.

Family Farming 52

Family Farming Crop Farming Farming 52

Civil Eats

MAY 1, 2024

Conservation on the Farm One way to do this is by using less fertilizer on the field. Another is to introduce on-the-field and edge-of-field conservation practices, like Tesdell is doing on his Iowa family farm. Tesdell’s farm is not the typical Iowa farm, which averages 359 acres. Tesdell’s is 80.

Fertilizer 143

Fertilizer Farming Farming Acre 143

Modern Farmer

FEBRUARY 12, 2024

It was founded in 2013 in the Champaign-Urbana area by a group of researchers, students and farmers that were interested in exploring how perennial agriculture and agroforestry could benefit Midwestern farmlands. The organization focuses on Illinois and Wisconsin but also does support work in Iowa, Minnesota, Michigan and Indiana.

Farming 87

Farming Farming Crop Production 87

Daily Yonder

NOVEMBER 18, 2024

“Unfortunately, there’s a lot of seeds that get sown in the fall, and without rain, they’re not going to germinate,” said Amy Hepworth, owner of Hepworth Farms, a seventh-generation family farm located just off the Hudson River in New York state.

Farming 79

Farming Farming Seeding Science 79

National Young Farmers Coalition

JUNE 9, 2023

Funding through the Increasing Land Access, Security, and Opportunities Act will provide critical resources to both individual producers as well as community-led organizations to implement farmland access, retention, and transition projects. Young farmers desperately need access to quality, affordable farmland.

Farmland 40

Farmland Farming Farming Ruralism 40

Modern Farmer

JUNE 30, 2023

Prime farmland, it attracted countless farmers, including the Black farmers seeking to fulfill the promise of “40 acres and a mule” that followed the American Civil War. But Black farm ownership has dropped dramatically over the years, with just 1,500 estimated to remain in Arkansas today.

Acre 95

Acre Sharecropping Processing Farming 95

Civil Eats

DECEMBER 10, 2024

In the months before Patrick Brown was born in November 1982, his father, Arthur, lay down on a road near the familys farm to prevent a caravan of yellow dump trucks from depositing toxic soil in his community. Patrick currently operates Brown Family Farms on the land that Byron worked as a sharecropper once he was freed.

Plantation 144

Plantation Farming Farming Acre 144

Farm Credit of Southern Colorado

JANUARY 11, 2024

The USDA Conservation Reserve Program is essentially where farmers get rental payments for environmentally sustainable farming practices and the Emergency Conservation Program is on that provides funding and technical help for farmland affected by disasters. What makes these Conservation Programs unique?

Family Farming 52

Family Farming Farmland Fertilizer Farming 52

Modern Farmer

MAY 28, 2024

“Of 400 farms in our county, only five are organic,” says Matt Fitzgerald of Fitzgerald Organics in Hutchinson, Minnesota. His 2,500-acre family farm is patchwork across 40 miles of land the family owns and leases, and grows organic corn, soy, wheat and specialty crops such as beans and peas.

Agriculture 104

Agriculture Agriculture Acre Farming 104

The Equation

APRIL 3, 2023

The increased volume of water may cause rivers, dams, and levees to overflow, inundating nearby communities and farmland. Small- and medium-sized family farms, in particular, often have fewer resources to sustain damages and don’t have the luxury to prepare for the next growing season.

Agriculture 88

Agriculture Agriculture Crop Food 88

Civil Eats

OCTOBER 17, 2023

He continued, “We’re very grateful to have the seashore’s federally recognized and affiliated tribe be part of this project.” “By getting rid of these small family farms, we’re forcing dairy farms to get bigger and bigger and the whole food system to be less environmentally friendly and produce lower-quality food that’s not organic.”

Ranching 141

Ranching Acre Food Farming 141

NASDA

JULY 25, 2024

Agronomy, Crop, and Soil Science Societies (ASA, CSSA, SSSA) AgTexas Farm Credit Alabama Ag Credit Alabama Farm Credit Altamaha Riverkeeper Amcot American Beekeeping Federation American Biogas Council American Bird Conservancy American Chestnut Land Trust American Farm Bureau Federation American Farmland Trust American Pulse Association American Rivers (..)

Farming 130

Farming Farming Seeding Ruralism 130

CalCAN

AUGUST 15, 2023

CalCAN is one of hundreds of sustainable, organic, and family farming organizations across the country that is engaged in farm bill advocacy this year. Sponsors: Representatives Dan Newhouse (WA-04), Jimmy Panetta (CA-19), and Chellie Pingree (ME-01) See here for more information.

Farming 52

Farming Farming Manure Agriculture 52

Food Tank

APRIL 2, 2024

Global Growers Network (GGN) Working with a network of 175 families, many of whom are resettled refugees, GGN connects food producers to sustainable agriculture resources and quality farmland. In 2021, they acquired a 23-acre property that will offer a home to farmers who face barriers of access to land and capital.

Cultivation 86

Cultivation Food Marketing Distribution 86

CalCAN

AUGUST 10, 2023

Christine shared her experience seeing how speculative investment in agricultural land has increased farmland values and made it really challenging to find affordable land. Don’t sell the family farm because you will never get it back. That is one way to give back if you can no longer farm it yourself.

Orchard 52

Orchard Farming Farming Agriculture 52

Modern Farmer

JULY 10, 2023

As westward expansion swept across the region in the late 1800s, settlers began draining the 40-foot deep lake for farmland. Despite the resilience of family [farms], the mega-trend is undeniable,” says Raudabaugh. These state incentive programs all help to keep family farms in business while advancing innovations. “It

Farming 81

Farming Farming Manure Agriculture 81

Modern Farmer

AUGUST 23, 2024

Farm Hounds Family farms often struggle to stay profitable as agriculture becomes more concentrated. There were 141,733 fewer farms in the US in 2022 than in 2017, according to the Census of Agriculture. Is there a way to make healthier dog food that won’t burden the planet so much?

Food 88

Food Farming Farming Compost 88

Caff

FEBRUARY 23, 2022

farmland owners identify as white. This year we will work with CDFA and allies to ensure this program will equitably support the growth of food systems jobs and the local farming economy. This deeply inequitable history has resulted in our current landscape where 98% of U.S. WANNA GET MORE INVOLVED?

Supply Chain 52

Supply Chain Food Processing Integrated Farming 52

Agwired

DECEMBER 8, 2023

International Trade Commission to consider the impacts that tariffs on Moroccan shipments of fertilizers are having on family farms. They will each serve a two-year term at the helm of the organization.

Plowing 45

Plowing Ruralism Agriculture Agriculture 45

Daily Yonder

MARCH 4, 2024

Finding adequate, affordable health insurance can be a huge challenge for people who run small, family farms or ranches, said Alana Knudson, director of the NORC Walsh Center for Rural Health Analysis. Kenneth McAlister’s family farmland in Electra, Texas.

Ranching 99

Ranching Ruralism Farming Farming 99