Regenerative Agriculture

Harnessing soil as a potent weapon against climate change

Farmers are a group who engage with climate impacts most directly—and floods in the Midwest in 2019, California droughts, and East Coast hurricanes have hit rural and agricultural sectors hard, along with already tight profit margins and trade disruptions. The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) sees agriculture not only as a victim of climate change […]

“Regenerative Organic Certified” is 2020’s biggest trend, says Whole Foods

Taking the organic label a few steps further, a new certification standard is moving into the mainstream. Regenerative Organic (ROC) will apply to foods made with organic ingredients, sourced from farms embracing pasture-based animal welfare, offer fair labor and economic stability for workers and communities, and prioritize soil health, biodiversity, carbon sequestration, and land management. […]

Minnesota farmers discover the rewards of cover crops

The Midwest has been beset by floods this past year, exacerbating an erosion problem stemming from decades of industrial agriculture’s mono-cropping. But seven farmers near Dundas and Faribault, Minnesota, are going against the centuries-old practice of fall tilling (leaving fields bare all winter)—instead they’re planting cereal rye and tillage radishes. They’re thrilled to find earthworms […]

A Big Idea

A Midwestern farmers’ network is trying to save our soils, one field at a time.

Meet the sustainable poultry company taking on Big Ag

Arkansas-based Cooks Venture envisions many rewards from changing the way chickens are produced. It claims to be the first vertically integrated poultry company in the U.S. built to scale in 50 years and the first to use pasture-raised heirloom birds. From broiler genetics to regeneratively grown feed, the company hopes to change a paradigm by providing […]