Growing Returns

Selected tag(s): yield

Study shows healthy soils protect corn yields and lower crop insurance payouts

By Emily Oldfield / Published: March 10, 2021

Managing risks presented by extreme weather conditions such as heat and drought is a top priority of farmers and policymakers, as researchers predict that higher temperatures and reduced precipitation could reduce yields by up to 30% over the next 50 years.

Farmers are already experiencing these impacts and becoming increasingly dependent on the Federal Crop Insurance Program to manage the resulting yield risks. As of this February, 2020 crop insurance indemnities totaled $7.7 billion, with just over 60% of the average crop insurance premiums covered by the taxpayer. Read More »

Posted in Uncategorized / Also tagged corn, crop insurance, farm finance, soil health, sustainable agriculture | Comments are closed

How conservation can enhance a farm’s financial health — even in challenging times

By Maggie Monast / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: May 23, 2019

With the U.S.-China trade war and flooding in the Midwest continuing to make headlines, national attention is focused on the increasing economic challenges facing farmers and their families.

After years of weak commodity prices, these financial stresses are adding up. In the Corn Belt, farm bankruptcies are at the highest level in over a decade.

Given this challenging economic outlook, some might assume that farmers will abandon conservation efforts and focus exclusively on their finances. However, many of the financial best practices cited by farmers and encouraged by farm financial advisers are the very same principles that can help farmers continue to improve environmental outcomes. Here are four examples. Read More »

Posted in Uncategorized / Also tagged conservation, environment, farm finance, finance, investment, sustainable agriculture | Read 2 Responses

Why collaboration between ag equipment and tech companies is a good thing for the environment

By Robert Parkhurst / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: July 12, 2016

Binary code In order for the agriculture sector to deliver on the growing demand for sustainable grain and participate in emerging carbon markets, growers need a way to demonstrate that their management practices are benefiting the environment.

Scientists have identified multiple practices that farmers can implement to maximize yield while minimizing impacts to air and water. Meanwhile, companies such as Trimble Ag, John Deere, SST Software, and countless others have developed a wide array of sensing tools and data collection methodologies to calculate and monitor the environmental benefits of these practices.

Yet as one might expect in any emerging market, the tools aren’t fully communicating with each other, thereby limiting their true potential.

The good news is that the makers of these technologies have started collaborating with agricultural practitioners to make their systems more compatible. Even in this fragmented industry, companies are starting to work together to streamline data collection – and this has enormous implications for sustainability.

Here’s why. Read More »

Posted in Uncategorized / Also tagged ag equipment, ag retailer, ag tech, Agriculture Data Coalition, American Farm Bureau, carbon markets, CNH Industrial, data, data collection, data integration, data management, environment, environmental defense fund, farm, farmers, farming, fertilizer, fertilizer efficiency, fertilizer management, Google, internet of things, Iteris, John Deere, Land O'Lakes, M2M, machine to machine, nitrogen application rates, nutrient management, Partnerships, precision agriculture, Raven Industries, soil, SST Software, stewardship, sustainable agriculture, tech company, The Climate Corporation, The Ohio State University | Comments are closed

Organic or conventional. Which production system can feed the world sustainably?

By Suzy Friedman / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: March 15, 2016

Organic. Conventional. Locally grown. And the list goes on. The seemingly age-old debate of what system can best feed and sustain the planet is again at the front of my mind on National Ag Day.

When I spoke at a recent Food Entrepreneurship Symposium event at Princeton University, an audience member asked me if organic is the best path forward to feed the planet sustainably. At Commodity Classic in New Orleans earlier this month, I spoke with growers about whether conventional ag is the way to feed a growing population.

My answer: there is no silver bullet when it comes to sustainable agriculture. There is no single system, no one-size-fits-all prescription that can solve our food security and environmental sustainability challenges.

That’s why we cannot afford to shut the door on any idea, or on any system of food production. Here’s how organic and conventional compare on yields and environmental impacts, and why we need both systems, local and global production, and big and small farms in order to protect food security and the planet. Read More »

Posted in Climate Resilience / Also tagged agriculture, air pollution, climate change, commodity classic, conservation, conventional, ecosystems, farmers, farming, farms, fertilizer, food, food production, food security, nitrogen, organic, soil health, sustainability, sustainable agriculture, water quality | Comments are closed