Civil Eats

APRIL 29, 2024

The USDA’s National Organic Program (NOP) currently requires compost to be derived from plant and animal materials, such as manure, food scraps, leaves, and straw. Department of Agriculture (USDA) compost rules could dramatically change the meaning of organic compost for farmers.

Compost 141

Compost Manufacturing Food Production 141

Modern Farmer

NOVEMBER 6, 2023

Much of the wool was saturated with organic matter such as manure, straw and leaves. As she undertook the cumbersome process of cleaning the wool, Maksymiuk realized she would end up with a lot of unusable material. Bags of this “waste wool” sat around for a long time, with Maksymiuk unsure what to do with it.

Processing 127

Processing Fertilizer Nutrient Pollution Ranching 127

Modern Farmer

MARCH 4, 2024

And mushrooms of all kinds sprout as they feast on crop waste, coffee grounds and horse manure. Yeast feeds on sugars, for example, to produce alcohol, while certain mold strains churn out penicillin and other antibiotics. More recently, mycologists have been unleashing fungi on common industrial and consumer waste.

Cultivation 125

Cultivation Manufacturing Production Textiles 125

Civil Eats

MARCH 19, 2024

Grown in a combination of manure and straw, they produce a distinct kind of spent substrate that is also used as compost, though it is a very different material from specialty mushroom substrate, with fewer applications. In the U.S.,

Compost 138

Compost Farming Farming Logistics 138

Sustainable Food Trust

OCTOBER 1, 2024

David narrowed his eyes beneath his wide-brimmed straw hat and scanned the plain of yellow esparto waving in the hot wind. The way forward and the way back – sheep were never really meant to be penned inside small paddocks of intensively farmed grass, unless it was for short periods to manure arable land.

Arable Land 98

Arable Land Straw Marketing Manure 98

Modern Farmer

FEBRUARY 14, 2025

Practitioners see the farm as a closed, biodiverse ecosystem that requires internal inputswhich can come from the manure of ruminants raised on the farm, or from teas made from plants grown and animal products present on the farmto nourish and feed itself. Photography by David Fritz Goeppinger.

Farming 63

Farming Farming Construction Harvest 63

Civil Eats

JULY 17, 2023

Partida uses an inhaler and believes the air quality in the region has worsened over time—not just from dust storms and pesticides, but also due to particle emissions from farm animals and manure. Amato Evan, a dust researcher at University of California, San Diego, installed a dust monitor east of Salton City in 2020.

Pesticide 98

Pesticide Acre Agriculture Agriculture 98

Sustainable Food Trust

JUNE 14, 2023

By ‘lack of humus’ he is referring to the increasing trend, even then, to dispense with returning organic matter to the soil, for example, in the form of composted farmyard manure, that was made possible by the development of synthetic fertilisers.

Ploughing 52

Ploughing Crop Yield Farming 52

Civil Eats

JANUARY 31, 2024

Glover’s eyes gazed out at an audience made up of a few dozen representatives of America’s largest grocers and food-service companies from beneath the brim of a straw cowboy hat. Behind them, green pastures stretched into the distance toward looming, sand-colored peaks. How do you make the best beef business in America?”

Ranching 143

Ranching Cattle Production Food 143