Is This The End Of Chemical Agriculture-? Epi- 453
02/01/22 • 42 min
See full show notes at Keith Snow.com
s This End Of Chemical Agriculture?
Since the mid-19th-century usage of NPK fertilizer has increased by over 800% up to 2019. This has allowed modern AG to produce a massive amount of food that is used for all sorts of products from cereal, non-dairy milk to fuel additives and beyond. The USA exports billions of tons of commodity foods each year to countries all over the globe.
“U.S. agricultural exports in fiscal year (FY) 2022 are projected at $175.5 billion, down $2.0 billion from the August forecast, but still a record if realized. This decrease is driven by reductions in oilseed and oilseed product exports that are partially offset by increases in livestock, poultry, dairy, cotton, and ethanol exports.”
— USDA
All this food production comes at a steep cost to farmers, the environment, and most importantly, this soil! Studies show that foods grown on American soil have steadily declined in nutritive value.
Vitamins, Minerals, and other components of basic foods (fruits, vegetables, grains) are less nutritious than they were decades ago. This is because modern agriculture used methods that destroy soil life, water infiltration, organic matter, photovoltaic capacity, etc.
The use of chemicals such as Glyphosate (Round Up), herbicides, pesticides, and other inputs are very harsh on soil and surrounding watersheds.
These methods only work when farmers can afford these costly inputs, they have been rising each year but in 2022 input costs are astounding. NPK cost is rising so fast it’s becoming untenable for farmers to plant crops, even with subsidies.
“Texas A&M economists found heading into spring planting, fertilizer prices are up 80% compared to 2021, and in some cases, farmers are seeing certain fertilizer prices more than double what they saw last year. But for the report, AFPC was conservative in its estimate, using a 50% increase in fertilizer costs. ”
— Ag Web
My point to this whole episode is many, small to medium-sized farmers will start to reject this whole system and decide to use Regenerative Agriculture instead of being controlled by “the system” and basically forced to continue injuring their land with this modern chemical-laden system.
I hope it happens, it will be painful, but if there is a will, there is a way!
See full show notes at Keith Snow.com
s This End Of Chemical Agriculture?
Since the mid-19th-century usage of NPK fertilizer has increased by over 800% up to 2019. This has allowed modern AG to produce a massive amount of food that is used for all sorts of products from cereal, non-dairy milk to fuel additives and beyond. The USA exports billions of tons of commodity foods each year to countries all over the globe.
“U.S. agricultural exports in fiscal year (FY) 2022 are projected at $175.5 billion, down $2.0 billion from the August forecast, but still a record if realized. This decrease is driven by reductions in oilseed and oilseed product exports that are partially offset by increases in livestock, poultry, dairy, cotton, and ethanol exports.”
— USDA
All this food production comes at a steep cost to farmers, the environment, and most importantly, this soil! Studies show that foods grown on American soil have steadily declined in nutritive value.
Vitamins, Minerals, and other components of basic foods (fruits, vegetables, grains) are less nutritious than they were decades ago. This is because modern agriculture used methods that destroy soil life, water infiltration, organic matter, photovoltaic capacity, etc.
The use of chemicals such as Glyphosate (Round Up), herbicides, pesticides, and other inputs are very harsh on soil and surrounding watersheds.
These methods only work when farmers can afford these costly inputs, they have been rising each year but in 2022 input costs are astounding. NPK cost is rising so fast it’s becoming untenable for farmers to plant crops, even with subsidies.
“Texas A&M economists found heading into spring planting, fertilizer prices are up 80% compared to 2021, and in some cases, farmers are seeing certain fertilizer prices more than double what they saw last year. But for the report, AFPC was conservative in its estimate, using a 50% increase in fertilizer costs. ”
— Ag Web
My point to this whole episode is many, small to medium-sized farmers will start to reject this whole system and decide to use Regenerative Agriculture instead of being controlled by “the system” and basically forced to continue injuring their land with this modern chemical-laden system.
I hope it happens, it will be painful, but if there is a will, there is a way!
Previous Episode
Episode 452-Chili Colorado-Beef Chunks In Red Sauce
See today's show notes over at Harvest Eating
Chili Colorado is a simple dish made with beef (or pork), usually beef that is stewed in a mixture of rehydrated chilis with some onion, garlic, and a few simple spices.
I use several dried Mexican chilis....Ancho and Guajilo chilies are rehydrated in hot water after being “warmed” up in a dry skillet.
I used 4.25 lbs of chuck, 1 large white onion, 5 garlic cloves, 4 Ancho, and 5 Guajilo chiles along with about 5 cups of stock, 3 cups beef, 2 cups chicken.
Takes about 3 hours 30 minutes to stew the beef. Serve with rice or on corn tortillas with radish, sour cream, raw onion and cilantro. You will be amazed at how tender and succulent it is and also how little heat it has. These chiles are not very spicy but have TONS of complex flavor.
I hope you give it shot!
Resources for this episode:
Next Episode
What is Regenerative Agriculture and How can it Help Our Soil-Epi-454
Show notes at Keith Snow.com
There is a movement underfoot across the country, in fact, the world, and it’s called Regenerative Agriculture. It’s based on 5 principles:
- Limit or eliminate soil disturbance (do not till)
- Keep armor on the soil at all times (plant matter covering bare soil)
- Plant diversity, no mono-crops (multiple species planted at once in fields to build diversity)
- Keep living roots in the fields all year long if possible (do not leave fields fallow)
- Move ruminant animals over the land (cows, sheep, goats)
Some amazing farmers are preaching the good word around the country to educate other farmers. I think these farmer-educators are national heroes.
Photo Credit-Brown’s Ranch, ND
Farmers who are tired of being tied to a failing system that is harming their land and their wallets are finding a new way, a regenerative way to heal their land and build the profit back into farming. If you look at the photo above you will see a large herd of cows being rotationally grazed or mob-grazed, they will be moved onto fresh pasture in a short time and the area they are in now will be left to rest and regrow.
These methods build amazing soil health and the plants that grow can nourish profitable livestock of all types which is a very in-demand product to produce. Consumers are becoming more involved with where and who grows the food they eat.
Big business also knows full well this is the future of agriculture, some large companies have invested billions into Regenerative Agriculture.
“In the last month, several major initiatives have launched to promote farmers’ transition to this style of farming. Just this week we report on a program in Montana to help ranchers transition to rotational grazing, two weeks’ ago dairy giant Danone launched a regenerative dairy project with some major players including Corteva, DSM, Yara, MSD Animal Health, and leading agriculture university Wageningen. Earlier in June Indigo Ag, the ambitious Boston-based startup launched the Terraton Initiative, with the intention of sequestering one trillion tons of carbon from the atmosphere through regenerative agriculture methods. Earlier this year, General Mills and Anheuser Busch also made commitments to regenerative agriculture.”
— https://agfundernews.com/
As you can see, the word is out and the future is clear, Regenerative Agriculture is the way forward. Many large companies will see the market share of their products decline and more and more customers (farmers) reject the old way for the new way. This is good news folks!
Resources:
https://agfundernews.com/regenerative-agriculture-investing.html
https://www.sare.org/
https://agfundernews.com/rotational-grazing-pays-montana-ranchers.html
https://www.agriinvestor.com/regenerative-agriculture-investor-perspective/
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