Remove Family Farming Remove Livestock Remove Ruralism
article thumbnail

Bringing Youth Back to the Farm in Rural America

Food Tank

Large factory farm facilities have replaced smaller family farms. The state lost nearly 90 percent of its hog farms from 1982 to 2017, according to U.S. Even though we live in rural Iowa, kids don’t have access,” says Melissa Beermann, Monona County Director for Iowa State University Extension and Outreach.

Ruralism 116
article thumbnail

Livestock are Dying in the Heat. This Little-Known Farming Method Offers a Solution

Modern Farmer

Rooted in preindustrial farming, the method involves intentionally incorporating trees on the same land used by grazing livestock, in a way that benefits both. It also provides much-needed natural shade for livestock. Research shows that as the planet warms, livestock deaths will increase.

Insiders

Sign Up for our Newsletter

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

article thumbnail

Finding Balance as a Sixth-Generation Pig Farmer

Food Tank

Being a naive kid, living in rural America…you get burned out on a community that you know everybody in and you don’t take it for what it is. By his senior year, Williams was trying to figure out how to return home and take over the family farm. I was just working [on the farm] all the time and loved it.

Ranching 106
article thumbnail

A Young Farmer Makes the Business Case for Humane Hog Farming

Food Tank

Today, 22-year-old Roberts is enlisted with the Nebraska Army National Guard while working as a fifth-generation farmer with his parents at Roberts Family Farm in Southwest Iowa. The family’s farm serves as a model for how smaller-scale, humane hog farming can be both environmentally and economically sustainable.

Ranching 106
article thumbnail

The contribution of farming to the rural environment: A farmer’s viewpoint in 1985

Sustainable Food Trust

Today, farming is far from a simple livelihood. As well as growing food, farmers are tasked with delivering a broad spectrum of ‘public goods’ – from wildlife habitat and healthy soils to public access and rural employment. Is it the period 1750-1850 when most of the present rural features were planted or built?

article thumbnail

Op-Ed | A Missing Investment Strategy: Climate Resilience Hides in Local Food Markets

Food Tank

Remember that family farms continue to feed 70 percent of the worlds population. There is a strong market demand for local products from agroecological farms and producers, including green leafy vegetables, fruits, grains, small livestock, and native seeds. These markets are large and important to local producers.

article thumbnail

From Service to Soil: Hawaiʻi’s Veteran Farmers

Food Tank

Farming aligns with the skills, service mindset, and resilience they bring, especially since about 60 percent of active-duty personnel come from rural communities, Emily explains. Participants come away with practical skills and the knowledge to start their own small-scale agricultural ventures.

Food 106