Growing Returns

Selected tag(s): sustainability

Ag’s big data explosion can benefit the environment too

By Robert Parkhurst / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: October 5, 2015

Almost daily, I see new stories on how agribusinesses, entrepreneurs, and traditional technology companies are making big investments in precision agriculture tools and digital platforms that collect data from farms.

These data include information such as fertilizer rate, prescription accuracy, yield by square foot, seed type, and soil type. When analyzed at a large scale, the data can determine best practices for farm operations to maximize yield and minimize input costs.

This is an exciting trend, with big and small companies alike getting into the data game, and the tools used to collect this data becoming ubiquitous. And although these technologies weren’t necessarily started with sustainability in mind, they have tremendous potential to benefit the environment. Read More »

Posted in Carbon Market, Climate Resilience / Also tagged agriculture, air pollution, big data, Climate Corporation, DuPont, ecosystems, environment, farmers, farming, GHG mitigation, Monsanto, nutrient efficiency, precision agriculture, software, sustainable agriculture, technology, Trimble Ag, USDA, water pollution | Read 1 Response

Why one Kansas farmer is leading a soil health revolution

By Sara Kroopf / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: September 28, 2015

Kansas farmer Gail Fuller

Soil health wasn’t always this sexy. The United Nations has named 2015 the International Year of the Soils, the National Corn Growers Association created the Soil Health Partnership, and the Telegraph newspaper is claiming that we can only ignore the soil crisis for so long, and that “just a handspan of topsoil lies between us and oblivion.”

But Kansas farmer Gail Fuller has been at the forefront of soil health measures since the early 1980s. Just last month, he hosted the fourth annual “Fuller Field School,” a soil health workshop that was attended by growers from across the globe.

I asked Gail, who operates a diversified 1,000 acre farm in Emporia, Kansas, to tell me why soil health is so important for our food system, and why other growers should get on board. Read More »

Posted in Uncategorized / Also tagged agriculture, agronomist, conservation tillage, cover crops, drought, ecosystems, erosion, farmers, farms, fertilizer pollution, flood, growers, kansas, no-till, soil health, soil management, sustainable agriculture | Comments are closed

Powerful business: the lever for change across the ag supply chain

By Elizabeth Sturcken / Bio / Published: September 3, 2015

A longer version of this post was first published on EDF+Business.

Sometimes when a problem seems too big, too ugly and too complex to handle, you need a lever to help move things along. All of the big environmental problems we currently face fall into this category.

When it comes to tackling our planet’s biggest problems, there is a full spectrum of approaches and many different leverage points. A thriving planet and a thriving economy, farmers included, don’t have to be at odds. EDF is focusing on helping businesses make their supply chains cleaner, more efficient and more profitable.

By collaborating with decision makers at every point in the agricultural supply chain – from retailers and food companies to agribusiness and farmers – we are building demand for and increasing the supply of sustainably produced grains.

Posted in Supply Chain / Also tagged agriculture, consumer products, deforestation, ecosystems, farmers, FedEx, fertilizer, food production, greenhouse gas, McDonald's, Partnerships, supply chain, sustainable agriculture, Walmart | Comments are closed

Strong market signal for sustainable grain

By Katie Anderson / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: August 24, 2015

Walmart, Smithfield Foods and USDA discuss sustainable agriculture in St. Louis.

The agricultural supply chain is shifting towards demanding more sustainably produced grains, according to some of the country’s biggest food companies and retailers.

Representatives from Walmart, Smithfield Foods, and USDA recently discussed the importance of and increased consumer demand for agricultural sustainability in front of 100 agricultural retailers in St Louis. They were there for a meeting convened by United Suppliers, Inc., with a primary focus of the company’s SUSTAIN™ platform.

Three messages were clear:

Demand for more sustainable crops is here to stay.
Growers’ connection with the consumers of their products is increasing.
Fertilizer optimization and soil health offer a business opportunity for growers, ag retailers, and food companies alike.

Posted in Supply Chain / Also tagged agriculture, Campbell Soup, Dr. Jerry Hatfield, fertilizer, Janelle Kearsley, Kraig Westerbeek, nitrogen, Smithfield Foods, soil health, St. Louis, SUSTAIN, sustainable agriculture, United Suppliers, USDA, USDA-Agriculture Research Service, Walmart | Read 1 Response

3 ways drones can help take agriculture to new sustainability heights

By Stephanie Businelli / Published: August 19, 2015

A drone collects data while in flight. Photo credit

Drone technology has been around for decades, taking to the skies to capture movie sequences, collect scientific data and scout territory. But there’s another industry where drones are really beginning to take off: farming.

Agriculture is on tap to make up 80 percent of the market for unmanned aircrafts in the next couple of decades. With the invention of newer, more effective technologies, drones have the potential to launch the agriculture industry into a future of sustainability.

4 ways drones are helping people and nature prepare for climate change

Rules of the sky

In February of this year, the Federal Aviation Administration proposed long-awaited rules on the commercial use of small drones in the agricultural sector. The new regulations require operators to be certified, fly only during daylight and keep their aircraft in sight. Although this proposed legislation could take one or two years for final adoption, it marks a major step for the industry, as the guidelines provide the formal structure needed to legitimize drone use and advance the market for their production.

Although drone technology is still modifying production to increase ease of use and lower prices, these machines already have the potential to go a long way towards improving farmers’ bottom lines – and the environment. Here are three key benefits of drone use in agriculture: Read More »

Posted in Uncategorized / Also tagged agriculture, algal bloom, california, cameras, crops, dead zones, drones, efficiency, Federal Aviation Administration, fertilizer, runoff, sustainable agriculture, technology, vegetation, water quality, western water | Read 2 Responses

Cutting food waste to support farmers and the famished

By Peyton Johnson / Published: August 11, 2015

Surplus food at the Food Donation Connection. Photo Credit: USDA.

Food waste affects more than just our wallets. Approximately one-third of all food produced in the world gets thrown away every year, leading to 3.3 billion tons of greenhouse gas emissions. At 2.6 trillion pounds, that’s enough sustenance to feed three billion people, or almost all people living in poverty worldwide today.

That’s why, last week, when I attended a Q&A session for ag interns at the U.S. Department of Agriculture with Secretary Tom Vilsack, I was intrigued when a fellow intern asked a question regarding food sustainability and what the U.S. can do to ensure that there will be enough food to feed the 9 billion people expected to populate the world by 2050.

The Secretary’s answer? Reduce food waste.

Posted in Supply Chain / Also tagged agriculture, emissions, farm, farmers, feeding forward, food, food and agriculture organization of the united nations, food bank, food chain, food companies, food waste, greenhouse gas, grocery store, homeless shelter, poverty, produce, producers, secretary tom vilsack, supply chain, sustainable, sustainable agriculture, teens opposing poverty, united states department of agriculture, USDA, waste no food | Read 1 Response

Sustainability and profitability go hand-in-hand, says Iowa corn farmer

By Suzy Friedman / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: July 30, 2015

Tim Richter, owner of Saratoga Partnership.

Farming is a tough business. With constantly changing crop prices, difficult to predict and increasingly extreme weather variations, and changing consumer demands, growers don’t have an easy time of it.

Like any business, profitability is the number one priority. And it should be – if you are not profitable, it’s very hard to stay in business.

All the growers I’ve worked with care deeply about their land. In a recent survey of a group of Midwestern farmers, “land stewardship” ranked as their top value. And sustainability is in a farmers’ best interest since healthy lands plays a huge role in whether farms will be around – and productive – for the next generation. But making agriculture truly sustainable will require investment from farmers.

Here’s the good news: sustainability and profitability can go hand-in-hand. Efficiencies like fertilizer optimization can result in cost savings. And with those savings, growers can invest in new technologies and cover crops, which can help make farms more resilient and increase yields, generating long term economic gain.

I asked Tim Richter, owner of a swine and corn farm operation spanning 9,000 acres in northern Iowa and Missouri, to tell me his profitability and sustainability story. Read More »

Posted in Supply Chain / Also tagged agronomy, business, commodity crops, corn, cover crops, ecosystems, environment, farm, fertilizer, fertilizer optimization, G.I. bill, growers, iowa, iowa state, land stewardship, midwestern farmers, missouri, runoff, saratoga partnership, soil, soil conservation, sustainable, sustainable agriculture, swine, the sustainability consortium, Tim Richter, yields | Comments are closed

Buy me some peanuts and … sustainable produce?

By Stephanie Businelli / Published: July 24, 2015

Let the games begin! America’s sports teams are moving into the sustainable food arena.

A new report released by the Natural Resources Defense Council and the Green Sports Alliance highlights 20 venues that have played their part to reduce their impact on the environment. Of the 20 locations, 18 purchase produce from local farms, 17 provide organic food options, 14 compost their food, and seven use biodegradable eating utensils and plates. In order to provide the freshest food available, five venues even have their own on-site gardens.

These venues are going the distance – from the Portland Trail Blazers’ Moda Center to the Pittsburgh Pirates’ PNC Park – and providing fans with sustainable food options while simultaneously combating issues such as greenhouse gas emissions from food waste.

Which team’s efforts are best? We asked some of EDF’s sports fans (myself included!) to talk about what their favorite team’s venues have done:

Posted in Uncategorized / Also tagged #compost, Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, drought, food, food waste, Green Sports Alliance, LEED Certification, Natural Resources Defense Council, New York Yankees, organic, Philadelphia Sixers, San Francisco 49ers, San Francisco Giants, sustainable agriculture, U.S. Green Building Council, water use, western water | Comments are closed

More reasons to embrace food sustainability

By Suzy Friedman / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: July 13, 2015

Credit: Flickr user Ruben Holthuijsen

There is no shortage of news about the contamination of drinking water sources caused by fertilizer run-off from agriculture. And there is no shortage of regulatory responses to these events: Ohio and Michigan’s commitment to reduce phosphorus levels in Lake Erie by 40 percent; the nitrate lawsuit in Des Moines, Iowa, and Monday’s ruling on the Environmental Protection Agency’s authority to enforce total maximum daily load specifications for the Chesapeake Bay.

In addition, food companies wanting to source sustainably grown grains to meet that consumer demand and reduce their own supply chain risks are sending the same signal, further shining the spotlight on the growing demand for improved environmental outcomes from how we produce food.

If farmers can help meet these demands by being increasingly efficient with nutrients and protecting their soils, they will see nearer term benefits and possibly stem future regulations. Here’s why:

Posted in Supply Chain / Also tagged agriculture, Des Moines, EPA, farmers, farms, fertilizer, food production, Lake Erie, nutrient efficiency, regulation, soil health, SUSTAIN, sustainable agriculture, United Suppliers | Comments are closed

SUSTAIN: navigating the boom in precision ag

By Katie Anderson / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: June 19, 2015

Credit: United Soybean Board

There’s new proof that precision agriculture is on the rise.

Earlier this month, CropLife magazine and Purdue University released a survey that found more than 85 percent of agricultural retailers plan on investing in precision agriculture services in the next year. And more than 15 percent of the 2,000 retailers surveyed will invest over $100,000.

This is good news for increasing fertilizer efficiency, because precision technologies can go a long way toward helping farmers know when and where to apply fertilizer. Applying fertilizer when, where, and in the amounts it’s needed can help save on input costs and reduce the environmental impacts that occur when excess nitrogen runs off into nearby waters or is released into the air.

But there’s a caveat – with so many precision agriculture tools available today and even more coming to market on a regular basis, how is a farmer to know what is best? Growers need to have confidence that precision ag tools will help them optimize their fertilizer use, improve their farm’s sustainability, and protect their yields. Read More »

Posted in Supply Chain / Also tagged agriculture, croplife, ecosystems, farmers, farms, fertilizer, food production, nitrogen, nutrient efficiency, Partnerships, precision agriculture, soil health, sustainable agriculture, United Suppliers | Comments are closed