About The Land Institute
The Land Institute is a science-based research organization working to develop an alternative to current destructive agricultural practices. Our work is dedicated to advancing perennial grain crops and polyculture farming solutions.
Founded as a nonprofit organization in 1976, The Land Institute is committed to researching and developing food production methods that sustain the land and soil, a precious resource in an increasingly precarious state around the globe.
“The history of Earth-abuse through agriculture has been horrendous. Essentially, all of nature’s ecosystems are perennial polycultures. Agriculture reversed that. Consequently, soil erosion became a problem. The wilderness has to become a standard against which we judge our agricultural and cultural practices.” – Wes Jackson, co-founder, The Land Institute
The current agricultural paradigm takes a short-term/high-yield approach that is dependent on heavy chemical applications and petroleum consumption and leads to soil erosion and degradation. We aim to change that.
At The Land Institute, we believe we must grow food in partnership with nature by planting perennial grains in mixtures that can help build and protect the soil. We are dependent on our soil. It is everyone’s future.
The Land Institute’s journey since 1976 has been one of imagination and discovery defined by steady, cumulative progress. And it’s not over yet.
Perennial wheat heads, harvested by hand, are passed from one Land Institute employee to another for bagging. The identity of each plant is preserved and families of plants will be grown together in test plots next year.
“If your life’s work can be accomplished in your lifetime, you’re not thinking big enough.” – Wes Jackson