Prairie Research Could Help Farming Become More Resilient, Sustainable
On a still November day, Patrick O’Neal, the burn coordinator at Kansas State University’s Konza Prairie Biological Station near Manhattan, Kansas, convenes a meeting about a planned fire. “The goal…
Industry Helps Regenerative Ag Gain Momentum
KANSAS CITY — Whole Foods Market identified regenerative agriculture as one of nine leading food and beverage trends in 2020. The supermarket, a division of Amazon.com, Inc., predicted consumers would…
Our Turn At This Earth: Wes Jackson and the Land Institute
Often at meetings concerning the future of the Ogallala Aquifer, I have questioned the wisdom of using precious groundwater to grow corn. Farmers who make their livings growing that crop…
Turning research toward sustainable practices
Farmers and ranchers are constantly changing their practices to succeed. The challenge of a changing climate and the pressures of an ag economy push agriculture to conserve natural resources to…
Trees, big fans, and deep-rooted plants: How to suck 2 gigatons of carbon from the atmosphere
To have a chance of avoiding the worst impacts of climate change, society needs to reach net-zero emissions by 2050—meaning that if we can’t transition to an emissions-free economy by…
Global Agriculture Has a Planting Problem
Climate-friendly crops are getting more attention from farmers and food companies as pressure mounts to find sustainable forms of agriculture. Enter Kernza, a new grain that’s already got powerful backers like General…
Fred Iutzi is Working to Develop Kernza, a Sustainable Perennial Grain That Could Feed a Growing World Population
“The problem that agriculture has faced for 10,000 years is it started with the wrong hardware,” Fred Iutzi, president of The Land Institute, a research organization in Salina, Kan., told…
Perennial grain Kernza taking root in Minnesota
GOODHUE COUNTY, Minn. — If humans want to continue eating we need to continue farming. But many farming practices that have become common in the 21st century result in pollution…
15 Organizations Creating Healthier Soil to Save the Planet
One of the most important tools to combat climate change is right under our feet — soil. Unfortunately, the planet’s soil is being eroded at a rate of about one…
How a New Grain Could Help Combat Climate Change
Scientists in Minnesota and Kansas are developing a grain called Kernza, which, unlike most of our food crops, is a perennial plant with a whole host of environmental benefits. While…
Big ideas and the harsh deadline of climate change
SALINA, Kan. — Bill McKibben didn’t always make a habit of getting arrested. He was a wunderkind, a Harvard graduate who became a staff writer at the New Yorker at…
Kernza Has a Foot in the Door at Major Food Companies, and a Toehold in the MonDak, Too
There is just one food-grade Kernza line in the United States presently, and it just so happens to be from a facility in North Dakota. Healthy Food Ingredients, which specializes…