Growing Returns

How an ag retail program is scaling up sustainable practices

By Katie Anderson / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: February 17, 2016

SUSTAIN™ is continuing to gain momentum with food companies and government agencies.

Just today, the world’s largest pork producer, Smithfield Foods, said it would begin using the platform to reduce nutrient losses across its Midwest sourcing areas. And last week, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced $720 million in funding through the Natural Resources Conservation Service’s Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCCP) to advance sustainable practices. SUSTAIN is part of two RCPPs in Illinois and Iowa that will encourage more growers to engage in voluntary nutrient management and conservation practices.

SUSTAIN was developed by United Suppliers, Inc., a cooperative of agricultural retailers whose customers span 45 million acres across the U.S. and Canada, in coordination with EDF. The program trains ag retailers in using proven, effective technologies, practices, and products that advance sustainable agriculture. The retail staff then bring this knowledge to the growers they serve.

This unique business model has the potential to bring sustainable farming measures to scale. One ag retail location can for example reach hundreds of growers and thousands of acres.

Here are the details on why these two announcements mean a big leap forward for agricultural sustainability. Read More »

Posted in Climate Resilience, Supply Chain / Tagged agriculture, conservation, corn, ecosystems, farmers, farming, farms, fertilizer, food, food production, nutrient efficiency, Partnerships, soil health, supply chain, SUSTAIN, sustainability, sustainable agriculture, United Suppliers, USDA | Comments are closed

Program helps Texas ranchers save endangered bird, but more conservation is needed

By David Wolfe / Bio / Published: February 11, 2016

Dr. Nancy Heger with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department presented results of three decades of GIS analysis (from 1986 to 2015) showing that loss of golden-cheeked warbler habitat continues apace, particularly in the Austin to San Antonio corridor just west of Interstate 35.

Earlier this month, I helped organize the 2016 Golden-cheeked Warbler and Black-capped Vireo Symposium in Austin, Texas. The Symposium was attended by nearly 200 scientists, consultants, academics, regulators and interested citizens from as far away as Wisconsin and southern Mexico – all convening to review and discuss the science of the two species of interest.

Despite a recent petition to the contrary, the science on the golden-cheeked warbler is clear: habitat for the bird continues to disappear and the species warrants its endangered status.

We need more conservation, not less

A petition filed by Texans for Positive Economic Policy claims that there is ample population and habitat for the warbler, and that its status is inhibiting development and thereby the economy. There are two reasons why this claim is unfounded. Read More »

Posted in Habitat Exchange, Wildlife Protection / Tagged david wolfe, ecosystems, endangered states, Fort Hood, golden cheeked warbler, monarch butterfly, sage grouse, texas parks and wildlife | Comments are closed

My quest to balance nature and the agricultural economy

By Eric Holst / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: February 3, 2016

California’s Sutter Buttes are the remnants of a volcano that are sometimes called the “smallest mountain range in the world.”

On a clear day I can see the Sutter Buttes, the smallest mountain range in the world, from my office in Sacramento. It’s a landscape that inspires me.

Although the Sacramento Valley is not without its problems, when I look out my office window, explore the local outdoors with my kids, or catch the woodsy whiff of a pencil made from California incense cedar (yes, I collect those), what I sense in those sights, sounds and smells is balance.

Striking the right balance in our working landscapes

The Sacramento Valley is a real working landscape. I use that term a lot: “working landscape.” By that I mean a place where natural resources are used to provide economic benefit – “working” to support jobs, industries and economies, both local and of scale – in a way that strikes a balance between maximizing profits and sustaining the natural resources, or the “landscape.”

Striking that balance between economic output and environmental protection has been a pillar of my work at EDF. I’ve long believed that if we can find and replicate this delicate mix everywhere, we’d be in much better shape. Read More »

Posted in Habitat Exchange, Wildlife Protection / Tagged conservation, ecosystems, eric holst, greater sage-grouse, habitat exchanges, Interior, Michael Bean, mitigation, monarch butterfly, robert bonnie, sustainable agriculture, USDA, wildlife | Comments are closed

Carbon markets in agriculture are the next big thing

By Robert Parkhurst / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: January 24, 2016

I knew I wanted to focus my career on protecting the world’s great places, says Robert Parkhurst, pictured snorkeling in the Great Barrier Reef.

In 2006 California passed AB 32, legislation requiring the state’s Air Resources Board to develop market mechanisms to reduce the state’s greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels by 2020. It was a watershed moment, and I was lucky enough to be at the event where Governor Schwarzenegger signed the bill.

Even back then I saw the potential for environmental markets to improve climate stability by engaging, rather than penalizing, business. That’s why I’ve spent the past 10 years – seven with electric and information technology companies and the most recent three at Environmental Defense Fund – working to make agricultural GHG reduction programs a reality.

But my passion for conservation started long before passage of AB 32. Growing up in the San Francisco Bay Area, I spent nearly all my free time outdoors, largely through Boy Scouts where I became an Eagle Scout. The moment I earned merit badges for water and soil conservation, I knew I wanted to focus my career on solving environmental challenges and protecting the world’s great places. I’ve been extremely fortunate to spend Thanksgiving atop Mount Kilimanjaro, Christmas on the Great Barrier Reef, and New Year’s Eve soaking in the natural beauty of New Zealand.

I believe carbon markets are the best tool we have for limiting emissions from agriculture, maintaining yields, and ensuring a food secure future.

These days my camping excursions involve my son and daughter, who are lobbying me to buy a plug-in electric car. Seeing my kids share that same excitement for solving environmental challenges brings a smile to my face like nothing else can.

That’s why I’m working to build a $2 billion market for agricultural greenhouse gas reductions by the end of 2020. I believe carbon markets are the best tool we have for limiting emissions from agriculture, maintaining yields, and ensuring a food secure future. Read More »

Posted in Carbon Market, Climate Resilience, Supply Chain / Tagged agriculture, california, California Air Resources Board, Carbon Offsets, Climate, climate change, conservation, ecosystems, environment, environmental defense fund, farmers, farming, farms, fertilizer, food production, GHG mitigation, nutrient efficiency, Partnerships, resiliency, stewardship, sustainable agriculture | Comments are closed

What’s next for the greater sage-grouse? A public lands strategy

By Eric Holst / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: January 19, 2016

A few months have passed since the greater sage-grouse was deemed “not warranted” for listing under the Endangered Species Act. But that doesn’t mean that I’ve forgotten about the bird. Nor have the countless agency staff at the Department of Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service, Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and Forest Service (FS) who continue to work to ensure that the bird stays off of the Endangered Species List.

The listing decision signaled that the state, federal and other conservation plans for the greater sage-grouse should be enough to ensure healthy populations, and now we must continue the hard work on implementing these plans.

BLM and FS have already committed to developing Regional Mitigation Strategies for the greater sage-grouse within one year of the September 2015 listing decision – a strategy that I hope will bring consistency, transparency and high standards to mitigation on public lands. Read More »

Posted in Habitat Exchange, Wildlife Protection / Tagged BLM, conservation, ecosystems, endangered species list, forest service, greater sage-grouse, habitat exchanges, mitigation, regional mitigation strategy, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | Comments are closed

Why grasslands can bring in the green for growers

By Rebecca Haynes / Twitter profile / Published: January 13, 2016

Rebecca Haynes is a High Meadows Fellow with EDF’s Agriculture Greenhouse Gas Markets program.

Next week, hundreds of ranchers, landowners, land trusts, and environmental groups will gather in Stockton, California, for the California Rangeland Conservation Coalition’s annual summit. The event isn’t new, but the enthusiasm from attendees is unprecedented and palpable.

Why such a bustle in the grasses? Because of two recent landmark developments that reward ranchers for avoiding the conversion of grasslands to croplands:

In August, the Climate Action Reserve (one of the offset registries that oversees carbon credit development) approved a new voluntary grasslands protocol that offers payment for conservation activities.
In September, the Climate Action Reserve received a Conservation Innovation Grant (CIG) from the USDA to create a pilot grasslands project in coordination with EDF. This project will assist participating landowners in generating carbon credits. If adopted by the California Air Resources Board in the future, these credits could be sold in the California cap-and-trade market.

These two developments are part of a rapidly growing trend that offers landowners payments for conservation measures. Protecting grasslands means big wins for the planet and for ranchers, who have been committed partners in conservation and now have the opportunity to receive additional incentives to protect their landscapes. Here’s how it all works. Read More »

Posted in Carbon Market, Climate Resilience, Wildlife Protection / Tagged california, carbon credit, carbon market, carbon offset, climate change, conservation, cropland, ecosystems, farm, farming, grasslands, grasslands protocol, grazing, greenhouse gases, landowners, Partnerships, rangelands, sustainable agriculture, water quality | Read 2 Responses

From California to Idaho: Protecting rural pit stops on the monarch butterfly’s great migration

By Eric Holst / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: January 12, 2016

The eastern population of monarch butterflies overwinter in the forests of central Mexico, with the most prominent migration path following Interstate 35 from Amarillo Texas to Duluth Minnesota. (Credit: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service)

The eastern population of monarch butterflies overwinters in the forests of central Mexico, with the most prominent migration path following Interstate 35 from Amarillo Texas to Duluth Minnesota. (Credit: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service)

As a kid growing up in northern California, I found myself migrating to the beaches and boardwalk of Santa Cruz (along with tens of thousands of other land-locked youth) to escape the sweltering inland heat each summer.

Now, as an adult more than a decade into my conservation career, I’ve come to learn that the monarch butterfly, one of America’s most well-known and beloved insects, is drawn to the same place, only during winter.

The western population of monarch butterflies spends their winters along the California coast, seeking the temperate climate and coastal forests the area offers. This overwintering habitat extends as far North as the San Francisco Bay Area and as far South as San Diego along the U.S.-Mexico border. But the highest concentrations occur in a handful of sites in and around Santa Cruz.

A few weeks ago, I paid a visit to my old summer stomping grounds to see this iconic North American butterfly.

First stop: Natural Bridges State Park Read More »

Posted in Habitat Exchange, Wildlife Protection / Tagged agriculture, california, ecosystems, habitat exchanges, marginal lands, milkweed, monarch butterfly, Natural Bridges States Park, Santa Cruz, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, USDA, Xerces Society | Comments are closed

Meet the young Smithfield agronomist who’s turning the feed grain industry on its head

By Maggie Monast / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: January 7, 2016

EDF's Katie Anderson (left), Rachel Carr (center), and EDF's Maggie Monast (right) explore how Smithfield can use SUSTAIN in their Midwest sourcing areas.

EDF’s Katie Anderson (left), Rachel Carr (center), and EDF’s Maggie Monast (right) explore how Smithfield can use SUSTAIN in the company’s Midwest sourcing areas.

Forty million acres of U.S. land are dedicated to growing corn for animal feed. That’s roughly the land equivalent of the state of Florida. As the global demand for meat swells, so does the demand for feed grains.

Growing this corn requires a lot of fertilizer, yet up to 50 percent of fertilizer applied is lost, leading to air and water pollution as well as high costs for farmers.

MBGro, an innovative sustainability program developed by Smithfield Foods’ Hog Production Division, is helping solve this problem. MBGro offers free agronomic consultation to farmers, with a goal of keeping more nitrogen in fields and out of waterways, while maximizing profits along the way.

As a story in today’s Farm Journal noted, “Smithfield … hopes 75% of its grain sourcing acreage in the Southeast and Midwest will participate in [MBGro] by 2018.”

At the heart of MBGro is 25-year old agronomist Rachel Carr. I asked Rachel to tell me about her passion for sustainable agriculture, why she believes MBGro is a model for other protein companies, and about how cover crops played a role in her recent engagement. Read More »

Posted in Supply Chain / Tagged agronomy, animal feed, ecosystems, EDF, farming, feed grains, fertilizer, Murphy Brown, North Carolina, Smithfield Foods, SUSTAIN, sustainable agriculture, United Suppliers | Read 1 Response

How “fertigation” is helping this citrus grower beat the drought

By Sara Kroopf / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: January 5, 2016

A common misperception is that citrus season is in the summer, but peak citrus season is actually happening right now.

California grew over 90 percent of U.S. lemons last season, but the severe drought in 2015 caused a 9 percent dip in domestic lemon production compared to the previous growing season. This meant higher costs for farmers, consumers – and the planet.

In honor of peak citrus season, I asked Bakersfield citrus grower John S. Gless how he’s getting more crop per drop of fertilizer and water through “fertigation,” why efficiency and sustainability practices are good investments, and why land stewardship is a core part of farming. Read More »

Posted in Climate Resilience, Wildlife Protection / Tagged california, California drought, citrus, climate change, conservation, drip irrigation, drought, ecosystems, farmers, farms, fertilizer, food, food security, irrigation efficiency, lemon, micro irrigation, nutrient efficiency, sustainability, sustainable agriculture, UC Riverside, USDA, water use, western water | Comments are closed

How 2015 set the table for major agricultural and environmental success in 2016

By EDF Staff / Published: December 22, 2015

In 2015, U.S. agriculture proved to be a willing and powerful partner in the path to sustainability. We’ve seen farmers, ranchers and food companies make major headway in reducing greenhouse gas emissions, improving soil health, restoring habitat for at-risk wildlife and protecting freshwater supplies.

Here are some of this year’s highlights:

Approval of the first carbon offset protocol for crops in a cap-and-trade market (for U.S. rice growers), followed by approval of a grasslands protocol and a huge investment from USDA to develop a fertilizer protocol. These protocols reward farmers for conservation measures that reduce emissions and offer businesses new opportunities to offset the environmental impacts from their operations.

Launch of the innovative SUSTAIN platform throughout the United Suppliers agricultural retailer network. SUSTAIN, developed in coordination with EDF, trains ag retailers in best practices for sustainable farming and aims to enroll 10 million acres in the program by 2020. So far, over 300 sales representatives in Iowa, Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, and Ohio have attended training. And food companies interested in making SUSTAIN a feature of their sustainable sourcing work include Campbell’s, Unilever, Kellogg’s, General Mills, and Smithfield.

A “not warranted” listing decision for sage-grouse under the Endangered Species Act, due in large part to ranchers’ commitments to develop and implement conservation solutions for the bird. Habitat exchanges – a solution developed by EDF and partners in agriculture and industry – are now available in Colorado, Nevada and Wyoming for landowners to earn new revenue for protecting and enhancing greater sage-grouse habitat.

Release of Colorado’s first-ever water plan to ensure the health and vitality of the state’s streams, rivers, communities and wildlife – without harming farmers. The plan addresses development of financial mechanisms to incentivize participation in alternative water transfer mechanisms and subsidize agricultural water system optimization. This innovative water planning can now be a model for other water-stressed communities.

So what lies ahead for 2016? We asked our experts to share their thoughts and wishes for the New Year. Read More »

Posted in Carbon Market, Climate Resilience, Habitat Exchange, Supply Chain, Wildlife Protection / Tagged agriculture, campbell soup company, central valley, climate change and agriculture, conservation, drought, ecosystems, fertilizer, Grand Valley Water Users' Association, greater sage-grouse, greenhouse gas emissions, habitat exchange, monarch butterfly, Partnerships, SUSTAIN, sustainable agriculture, United Suppliers, Walmart, water use, western water | Comments are closed