Growing Returns

How John Deere and Cornell can ensure big data benefits farmers and the environment

By Robert Parkhurst / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: October 13, 2017

5 gigabytes of data is the equivalent of up to 1.6 million emails. (Photo credit: Flickr user Judd McCullum)

Modern farm equipment comes more outfitted than a fully loaded car. These precision farming machines are furnished with multiple sensors that collect data during planting, nutrient application and harvest. A typical farmer now has 5 gigabytes of data, five seasons’ worth, in storage.

This trove of data promises to revolutionize farming, giving farmers unparalleled insights for business and stewardship decisions. Unfortunately, the data collected tends to stay on equipment hard drives, greatly reducing its usefulness to farmers.

A new partnership between John Deere and Cornell University promises to change that. Ag-Analytics, a Cornell data platform, syncs with John Deere’s Operation Center and makes it easier than ever for farmers to access and analyze farm data. Cornell is the first university to integrate with John Deere, and the analytical tools now available to farmers include a crop insurance estimator and yield and risk management forecasts. Read More »

Posted in Supply Chain / Tagged big data, Cornell University, data analysis, data management, John Deere, Partnerships, precision agriculture, sustainable agriculture | Comments are closed

A plume of hope for an endangered bird and its forest

By Michael Bean / Published: October 10, 2017

The red-cockaded woodpecker is a keystone species of the longleaf pine ecosystem. (Photo credit: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Southeast Region)

In the pine forests of the Southeast, a small black and white bird spends its days hammering out cavities in the trunks of mature longleaf pine trees. The red-cockaded woodpecker is endangered, and its status reflects the condition of the entire forest ecosystem upon which it depends.

It was the gradual but steady disappearance of the region’s unique longleaf pine forests due to increased settlement, timber harvesting and development that initially raised concerns about the decline of the red-cockaded woodpecker population in the 1960s.

Since then, collaborative efforts between the federal government and private landowners initiated an encouraging uphill comeback for the keystone species. Read More »

Posted in Wildlife Protection / Tagged ecosystems, Endangered Species Act, endangered species act success stories, longleaf pine, national wildlife refuge, red-cockaded woodpecker, Safe Harbor, Safe Harbor agreements, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | Read 1 Response

“We sink or swim together” in the sagebrush sea, and beyond

By Eric Holst / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: October 5, 2017

Western governors, landowners, conservationists and others celebrated the collaborative and bipartisan conservation effort that led to a “not warranted” listing decision for sage-grouse in September 2015.

Today, the Interior Department opened up federal sage-grouse plans to potential changes, despite the concerns of many state, industry, landowner and conservation stakeholders across the country.

John Swartout, a senior policy advisor to Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper, said that it would be bad for Colorado if the sage-grouse plan, developed over years with local and state involvement, was eliminated, for fears that this would lead to a future Endangered Species Act listing.

“We didn’t work this hard to throw it all away and get a listing,” he said, echoing concerns of others that upending the plans could ultimately lead to the sage-grouse being listed.

Wyoming Governor Matt Mead reiterated what many western governors have told Secretary Zinke – that the states should be consulted about revisions to the plans because they are ultimately the ones who have to face the consequences if the plans fail and a federal listing is warranted.

“If it was a state by state listing decision, that’d be one thing,” Mead said. “But the way we are with the law right now, if one state gets listed, we all are going to get listed. We sink or swim together.” Read More »

Posted in Wildlife Protection / Tagged department of interior, ecosystems, Endangered Species Act, Governor Hickenlooper, governor mead, greater sage-grouse, mitigation, Partnerships, secretary zinke | Comments are closed

EPA’s rationale for withdrawing the Clean Water Rule is dead wrong. Here’s why.

By David Festa / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: September 29, 2017

The Clean Water Rule was established to clarify which bodies of water are protected by the federal Clean Water Act of 1972. (Photo Credit: Geoff Livingston)

We live in a nation of laws and rules for a reason. They make democracy possible.

That’s why Environmental Defense Fund last week submitted public comments on the Clean Water Rule, which the Trump Administration is proposing to rescind.

The Clean Water Rule, also known as Waters of the United States (WOTUS), was established in 2015 by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Army Corps of Engineers to clarify which bodies of water are protected by the federal Clean Water Act of 1972.

Soon after it was enacted, stakeholder groups sued – practically standard practice anytime a significant policy is put forward. We recognize the different opinions around WOTUS, but aversion to controversy is not basis for setting policy.

And yet, that’s what the EPA is trying to do – remove a policy not because it is unlawful, but because it is under litigation, which the EPA claims “produces uncertainty.” Read More »

Posted in Uncategorized / Tagged Administrative Procedure Act, clean water rule, EPA, water policy, western water, WOTUS | Comments are closed

Sea turtles swim towards a brighter future

By Eric Holst / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: September 29, 2017

Sea turtle populations are showing promising signs of recovery after years of decline. (Photo credit: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Southeast Region)

There’s some good news in the animal kingdom. Sea turtles, the beloved green jewels of the world’s vast blue oceans, appear to be bouncing back after decades of decline.

Six of seven sea turtle species are currently listed under the U.S. Endangered Species Act (ESA) – the green, loggerhead, Kemp’s ridley, olive ridley, hawksbill, and leatherback – and many of them have been on the list since 1970. Since then, conservation efforts have made significant strides in protecting nesting beaches, reducing mortality in fisheries and establishing marine protected areas.

Recent research suggests there is hope for beleaguered sea turtles. Important recovery in some local populations has shown that we can turn things around for sea turtles, especially with effective endangered species policy and improved management.

This comeback is promising, not just for turtles, but also for marine ecosystems and the marine economy at large.

Posted in Wildlife Protection / Tagged ecosystems, endangered species, Endangered Species Act, endangered species act success stories, fishermen, green sea turtle, hawksbill sea turtle, kemp's ridley sea turtle, leatherback sea turtle, loggerhead sea turtle, olive ridley sea turtle, sea turtles, wildlife | Comments are closed

Improving water quality is a shared responsibility

By Suzy Friedman / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: September 19, 2017

Iowa farmer Denny Friest surveys his fields from his combine.

Iowa farmer Denny Friest (Photo credit: John Rae)

I spent the summer meeting with farmers, commodity groups and food companies in the Midwest to discuss collaborative conservation approaches. Whether we were in Missouri, Iowa or Minnesota, water quality was top of mind.

Agriculture has a large impact on water quality – the sector is the source of 70 percent of the nutrients that flow down the Mississippi River and cause dead zones in the Gulf of Mexico.

Farmers have made big strides on implementing and scaling conservation measures to improve water quality and agriculture’s overall environmental footprint. Unsung heroes like Tim Richter, Kristin Duncanson and Denny Friest are constantly fine-tuning nutrient and soil management with new efficiency tools, finding better ways to implement cover crops or reduce tillage, installing wetlands and buffers, and introducing new crops into their rotations. Read More »

Posted in Supply Chain / Tagged campbell soup company, collaborative conservation, Denny Friest, farm bill, fertilizer, Kristin Duncanson, Kristin Weeks Duncanson, Land O'Lakes, midwest row crop collaborative, nutrient management, nutrient use, Partnerships, Smithfield Foods, SUSTAIN, sustainable agriculture, Tim Richter, USDA, water quality | Read 1 Response

The secret survival of the “masked bandit” in the vanishing prairie

By Michael Bean / Published: September 13, 2017

The black-footed ferret is known for its bandit-like mask of dark fur around its eyes. (Photo credit: USFWS Mountain Prairie)

The black-footed ferret, nicknamed the “masked bandit” for its racoon-like markings, is one of the most endangered mammals in North America – so scarce it was once thought to be extinct.

The last of the wild population of black-footed ferrets was thought to have died in 1974 in South Dakota, and the last ferret of the captive breeding program died in 1979.

Somehow, though, a number of ferrets were secretly surviving near the small town of Meeteetse, Wyoming.

In 1981, a cattle dog named Shep brought a dead ferret home to his owners. The ranchers took the ferret to a local taxidermist, who identified it as the once “extinct” black-footed ferret.

Posted in Wildlife Protection / Tagged black-footed ferret, conservation, ecosystems, Endangered Species Act, endangered species act success stories, north american zoos, Safe Harbor, wildlife, Wyoming | Read 1 Response

Once a pesky plant for farmers, this weed presents a new opportunity

By Audrey Archer / Bio / Published: September 7, 2017

Although milkweed contains toxins, it rarely poses any significant threat to people or animals. Grazing livestock generally avoid milkweeds when sufficient forage is available. (Photo credit: E. Dronkert)

A recent article called milkweed a “yield-robbing weed” for farmers.

Milkweed has a reputation for encroaching on cropland where it can compete with crops for soil and light. The plant can also create a nuisance on ranchlands, as cattle can be poisoned when poor foraging conditions lead hungry cows to milkweed-concentrated areas as a last resort.

This is why milkweed is difficult to find on most farms and ranches today. Along with climate change, it’s also a key reason why the beloved monarch butterfly population has declined by more than 90 percent in the last two decades.

The importance of milkweed

Milkweed is essential for monarchs, since butterflies need the plant to lay their eggs, and caterpillars exclusively feed on the milky sap-filled plant. It’s what makes monarchs poisonous to predators.

Increased herbicide application across the agricultural landscape, as well as mowing in roadside ditches and marginal areas, is eradicating milkweed from rural areas in the Corn Belt and other key regions of the monarch’s migration route.

In order to turn things around for the monarch, we need to change the incentive for landowners from spraying and mowing to protecting and restoring this vital habitat. Read More »

Posted in Habitat Exchange / Tagged conservation, duncanson growers, ecosystems, Kristin Weeks Duncanson, milkweed, monarch butterflies, monarch butterfly, monarch butterfly habitat exchange, Partnerships, pollinators | Read 1 Response

How an innovative corn supply chain model can empower companies to help farmers

By Maggie Monast / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: September 6, 2017

Grain elevator. Credit: Flickr user Wilson Hui

A new study out this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences suggests that trying to make supply chains more sustainable is not for the faint of heart, especially when it comes to food – and corn in particular.

Companies are keenly aware that consumers care about where their ingredients come from and how they were grown, and that improving efficiencies along the supply chain can be good for business. But the raw ingredients at the end of those chains are typically produced by a vast network of farmers who bring their corn to regional grain elevators and then sell their crops to grain traders. This is just the start of a lengthy and complicated process that can be challenging for food companies to disentangle and understand, let alone influence to become more sustainable.

That’s why the new study, which focuses on a corn supply chain model developed by the University of Minnesota’s Northstar Initiative for Sustainable Enterprise (NiSE), can be an important tool for empowering food companies with information that can help them tackle the tough job of supply chain sustainability. Read More »

Posted in Climate Resilience, Supply Chain / Tagged agriculture, conservation, ecosystems, environmental defense fund, farmers, farms, fertilizer, food production, PNAS, supply chain, sustainable agriculture, University of Minnesota, water quality | Comments are closed

Bridging the gap between farm and table

By Christina Sivulka / Published: September 5, 2017

Photo Credit

As a student at the George Washington University (GWU), I’ve had the privilege to attend classes taught by Dr. Kathleen Merrigan, former Deputy Secretary of Agriculture and current Executive Director of Sustainability at GWU.

I recently reconnected with Dr. Merrigan at a Washington, D.C. event called Transformers: Food, where she spoke on a panel about how technology and science are changing agriculture, revolutionizing modern food systems and changing the way we consume food.

Afterward, we sat down to talk about how farmers and consumers are adapting to these changes, and what we can look forward to as new movements arise.

At the Transformers: Food event, you mentioned that our society has recently become fixated with food and agriculture. What do you think has fueled this fascination? Read More »

Posted in Uncategorized / Tagged agricultural sustainability, agriculture, community, ecosystems, farmers, local, organic, sustainable agriculture | Comments are closed