Attra - Sustainable Agriculture

In this episode of Voices from the Field, NCAT Agricultural and Natural Resource Economist Jeff Schahczenski discusses the climate benefits of certified organic production systems with Dr. Amber Sciligo, Director of Science Programs at The Organic Center.  With training in systems-based research, Dr. Sciligo has worked closely with researchers, industry, farmers, and policymakers to identify organic research needs, and she has collaborated on a diverse range of research programs.Some of those research topics include mitigating climate change, increasing the feasibility of integrating livestock into produce cropping systems, increasing the accessibility of equitable agricultural technology for organic farmers, reducing tensions between National Organic Program standards and third-party food safety requirements, and tackling challenges associated with inadvertent pesticide contamination across the organic supply chain.Related ATTRA Resources:·        Agriculture, Climate Disruption, and Carbon Sequestration·   

This episode features a conversation between Stacie Peterson, NCAT’s Energy Program Director and Manager of the AgriSolar Clearinghouse, and Pete Berthelsen, Executive Director of The Bee and Butterfly Habitat Fund and President of Conservation Blueprint. It is the fourth in a series of AgriSolar Clearinghouse podcasts that are being featured on ATTRA’S Voices from the Field podcast.  Pete and Stacie discuss the benefits of pollinator habitat at solar energy sites, pollinator habitat design, seed mixes, pollinator health and quality, and what anyone can do to help pollinators in their own backyard.  AgriSolar Clearinghouse Resources: ·         AgriSolar Clearinghouse ·         Solar Pollinator Habitat ·         Solar Apiaries ·         Fact Sheet: Making the Case for Solar Beekeeping Other Resources: ·         Conservation Blueprint ·         The Bee and Butterfly Habitat Fund Contact Stacie Peterson at stacieb@ncat.org.  Please complete a brief survey to let us know your thoughts about the content of this po

Here’s a fun fact. Before European settlement, as much as 10% of the continental U.S. was influenced by the presence of beaver dams. Although beavers have been displaced from much of their historic range, land managers don't have to be high and dry in their absence. More and more people are rehydrating their land by mimicking beavers to catch and hold more water.  In this episode of Voices from the Field, Aaron Clausen of the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and Montana rancher Amber Smith chat with NCAT Regenerative Grazing Specialist Linda Poole about constructing do-it-yourself beaver dams, called beaver dam analogues.  Built mostly by hand with carefully placed sticks and rocks, these low-tech, affordable structures help landowners safely catch and hold more water on their land during runoff. The conversation also includes a bit about Aaron's work with WWF's RSVP (Ranching Sustainability and Viability Program) and Amber Smith's leadership of the nonprofit Women in Ranching.  Resources: World

En este episodio de Voices from the Field, Martin Guerena, especialista en agricultura sostenible de la oficina regional occidental de NCAT en Davis, California, habla con Patricio O'Neil de Soil Health Services en Alamosa, Colorado. Su conversación describe los cultivos característicos de la región del valle de San Luis Colorado, la sequía de la región y sus desafíos, prácticas para mejorar la salud del suelo y el secuestro de carbono por medio de cultivos de cobertura, la composta dominada por hongos y la rotación de cultivos. También habla sobre el Parque Agrícola Rio Grande de Alamosa, Colorado.   Recursos de ATTRA:Recursos en EspañolOtros Recursos: ·       Rio Grande Farm Park Para obtener más información sobre este tema, puede contactar a Martin Guerena directamente: marting@ncat.org.Llame a la línea de “ATTRA en Español” con cualquier pregunta sobre agricultura sostenible al 800 411-3222 o por correo electrónico a marting@ncat.org.Nuestros especialistas pueden ayudarle con una amplia gama de temas

This special edition of Voices from the Field takes a look back at some highlights from the podcast during 2022. It was a great year for Voices from the Field, with 50 interesting conversations and loads of practical information running the gamut of sustainable-agriculture topics. We’re honored that Voices from the Field has become a trusted source of information about sustainable agriculture and renewable energy since it began more than five years ago, with thousands of subscribers adding it to their weekly downloads. Featured Podcasts: ·         Episode 258. Everything Old is New Again, Exploring Indigenous and Traditional Agriculture Methods, Part 1 ·         Episode 259. Everything Old is New Again, Exploring Indigenous and Traditional Agriculture Methods, Part 2 NCAT Sustainable Agriculture Specialists Felicia Bell and Justin Duncan take a look at the traditional family agricultural methods that were passed down to them, and how they parallel indigenous practices. Contact Felicia Bell and Justin Duncan a

This episode features a conversation between Stacie Peterson, NCAT’s Energy Program Director and Manager of the AgriSolar Clearinghouse, and Lexie Hain, the country’s leading solar grazing expert.  It is the third in a series of AgriSolar Clearinghouse podcasts that are being featured on ATTRA’S Voices from the Field podcast. Lexie is a farmer, solar grazer, and the Director of Agrivoltaics at Lightsource BP.  She co-founded the American Solar Grazing Association and is a stakeholder in the AgriSolar Clearinghouse. She also coined the term solar grazing.  Lexie and Stacie discuss the practicalities of solar grazing, how to prepare and manage agrivoltaic sites, opportunities for grazers and solar developers, and how sheep and solar are made for each other. This material is based upon work supported by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) under the Solar Energy Technologies Office Award Number DE-EE000937. Legal Disclaimer: The views expressed herein do not nec

In this episode of Voices from the Field, NCAT Horticulture Specialist Tammy Howard talks with Drew Shanafelt, Director of Abundant Montana. Abundant Montana has been a local foods directory staple in Montana since the 1990s. In recent years, it has evolved from being a static directory to a dynamic multimedia resource for consumers, food suppliers, and producers. In this conversation, Tammy and Drew talk about how producers can use Abundant Montana as a resource in their marketing and outreach to consumers.  Related ATTRA Resources: ·         Tips for Selling at Farmers Markets ·         Farm Branding: Selling Your Products Through Story ·         Direct Marketing Other Resources: ·         Abundant Montana Contact Tammy Howard at tammyh@ncat.org. Please complete a brief survey to let us know your thoughts about the content of this podcast. You can get in touch with NCAT/ATTRA specialists and find access to our trusted, practical sustainable-agriculture publications, webinars, videos, and other resources at

In this episode of Voices from the Field, we meet Dr. Carolyn Krejci, an industrial engineer and expert on supply-chain management at the University of Texas at Arlington who is designing surprising new ways of supporting local and regional food systems. She and NCAT Southwest Regional Director Mike Morris sit down to discuss her pioneering research on food transportation and the ingenious new “crowdshipping” phone app she and her team recently created for matching small farms with drivers who are willing to deliver farm products to urban markets. Could a ride-sharing system for food products expand markets and increase incomes for small farms?  Related ATTRA Resources: ·         Selling to Local and Regional Markets: Barriers and Opportunities for Beginning Farmers·         Scaling Up Your Vegetable Farm for Regional Markets·         Food Hubs: A Producer Guide  ·         Intermediated Markets   Other Resources:   ·         Project report for “Regional Food Transportation for Texas Farmers,” Southern SARE R

In this episode of Voices from the Field, NCAT Sustainable Agriculture Specialist Luz Ballesteros talks with Michael Navarro of the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley about his biochar research. Michael, working with biochar created from grapefruit peels, is examining its ability to remediate soils that have been contaminated with heavy metals.Luz and Michael also talk about the ways biochar is used in agriculture, such as water filtration and seed coating, and other ways it may be used in the future. They also discuss nuts-and-bolt issues such as its availability for producers.Related ATTRA Resources:·        Biochar·        Biochar and Sustainable Agriculture·        Building a Biochar Retort Kiln Contact Luz Ballesteros at luzb@ncat.org.Please complete a brief survey to let us know your thoughts about the content of this podcast.You can get in touch with NCAT/ATTRA specialists and find access to our trusted, practical sustainable-agriculture publications, webinars, videos, and other resources at NCAT.OR

This episode is a conversation between Stacie Peterson, NCAT’s Energy Program Director and Manager of the AgriSolar Clearinghouse, and Nate Tassinari, the owner of Million Little Sunbeams, a third-generation hay farm in Monson, Massachusetts.It is the second in a series of AgriSolar Clearinghouse podcasts that are being featured on ATTRA’S Voices from the Field podcast.  Nate’s hay operation is a 1-acre farm co-located with a solar array that generates 250 kilowatts of power. It is centrally located among a network of family farms and has solar panels that are elevated 10 feet above the ground, both to accommodate haying equipment and to satisfy Massachusetts regulations for incentives.In the conversation, Nate describes the financial aspects of owning a solar array, how to harvest the sun during the winter, the interconnection of family farmlands, and the role solar can play in farm ownership.This material is based upon work supported by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewab

Lynette Niebrugge, Associate Director of Education and Training at the Carbon Cycle Institute (CCI), and Loren Poncia, co-owner of Stemple Creek Ranch in Tomales, California, broke new ground with one of CCI’s first Carbon Farm Plans almost a decade ago.  In this episode of Voices from the Field, Lynette and Loren speak with NCAT Climate and Agriculture Program Manager Elise Haschke about what it means to approach conservation planning through a carbon lens. They also share the process for developing a Carbon Farm Plan for individual farms and ranches, as well as the many co-benefits associated with implementing conservation practices included in a Carbon Farm Plan. Contact Elise Haschke at eliseh@ncat.org.Related ATTRA Resources:·        A Look at the Texas Soil Wealth Alliance. Part 1·        A Look at the Texas Soil Wealth Alliance. Part 2 Other Resources:·        Carbon Cycle Institute·        Stemple Creek RanchPlease complete a brief survey to let us know your thoughts about the content of this podcast.

How is organic farming changing in America? Should soil-free hydroponic produce be certified as organic? And why have 1,100 certified-organic farms started adding a Real Organic label to the familiar green USDA Organic label? In this episode of Voices from the Field, NCAT Southwest Regional Director Mike Morris sits down with Linley Dixon, Co-Director of the Real Organic Project, for a conversation about integrity, soil, transparency, and changes happening within the organic movement.   Related ATTRA Resources: ·         Takeaways from the Real Organic Symposium ·         Organic Farming ·         Organic Regulations ·         Organic Certification  Other Resources:   ·         Real Organic Project·         Real Organic Podcast ·         Real Organic EcoFarm Pre-Conference 2023Contact Mike Morris at mikem@ncat.org. Please complete a brief survey to let us know your thoughts about the content of this podcast. ·         You can get in touch with NCAT/ATTRA specialists and find access to our trusted, practical s

In this episode of Voices from the Field, NCAT Specialist Kei Matsunami talks with Chris Gaskell of Grasmick Produce of Twin Falls and Boise, Idaho, about the company’s farm to school sales and DoD Fresh contract with the Montana Office of Public Instruction. This podcast is produced by the National Center for Appropriate Technology through the ATTRA Sustainable Agriculture program, under a cooperative agreement with USDA Rural Development. ATTRA.NCAT.ORG.This podcast episode is one of a number of case studies featuring farmers successfully navigating school sales as part of Bringing the Farm to School, a training program developed as a cooperative agreement between NCAT, the National Farm to School Network and the USDA Food and Nutrition Services.

In this edition of Voices from the Field, Lacy Stephens of the National Farm to School Network talks to Rae Rusnak of L&R Poultry and Produce and Kate Seybold of Minneapolis Public Schools. L&R Poultry and Produce has been consistently selling to MPS for more than eight years. Rae and Kate discuss what has made this partnership successful and beneficial for both of them, and they each share recommendations for building long-term relationships with school buyers. This podcast is produced by the National Center for Appropriate Technology through the ATTRA Sustainable Agriculture program, under a cooperative agreement with USDA Rural Development. ATTRA.NCAT.ORG.This podcast episode is one of a number of case studies featuring farmers successfully navigating school sales as part of Bringing the Farm to School, a training program developed as a cooperative agreement between NCAT, the National Farm to School Network and the USDA Food and Nutrition Services." 

Sixteen-year-old Maloi Lannan is a passionate and knowledgeable climate warrior using profits from her self-published soil health coloring book to build a flock of 100-percent grassfed sheep in Montana's Paradise Valley. In this episode of Voices from the Field, Maloi and her mom Meagan tell NCAT's Linda Poole about their approach to maintaining their fifth-generation family ranch. Their methods include regenerative agriculture, land stewardship, and low-stress stockmanship (except maybe when lambs escape) with a goal of building interdependent and profitable businesses and communities. Listen in to hear a real-life, feel-good story about raising capable, resilient, caring kids through daily hands-on work in regenerative agriculture. Related ATTRA Resources:  ·         Wisdom from SHEperds: ATTRA’s She’s Raising Sheep Podcast Series, Episodes 1-5 ·         Grazing to Control Parasites Other Resources: ·         Barney Creek Livestock ·         Barney Creek Regenerative Agriculture Coloring Book ·   

In this episode of Voices from the Field, NCAT Sustainable Agriculture Specialists Nina Prater and Lee Rinehart talk about how to improve profitability on livestock operations. They focus specifically on ruminants — choosing the right animals for your environment, grazing management, farm infrastructure, and marketing. Lee shares some guiding questions farmers and ranchers can ask themselves when making farm-management decisions to be sure their operations remain profitable.  Related ATTRA Resources: Small-Scale Livestock Production Demystifying Regenerative Grazing and Soil Health with Dr. Allen Williams  Scaling Up for Regional Markets Regenerative Grazing with Travis Krause Managing Photosynthesis Through Optimal Grazing Other Resources: Livestock Compass Spreadsheet Contact Nina Prater and Lee Rinehart at ninap@ncat.org and lee@ncat.org. Please complete a brief survey to let us know your thoughts about the content of this podcast. You can get in touch with NCAT/ATTRA specialists and find access our truste

In this episode of Voices from the Field, Stacie Peterson, Energy Program Director at the National Center for Appropriate Technology, talks with Meg Caley, Executive Director and co-founder of the Colorado nonprofit Sprout City Farms. Sprout City Farms began in 2010 with a vision of increasing food access and community resiliency through farming underutilized urban land. Among its partnerships, Sprout City Farms works with Jack’s Solar Garden in Longmont, Colorado, growing crops in the spaces between solar panels at the site, which is the largest agrivoltaic research facility of its kind in the United States. Related NCAT Resources: Sheep and the Sun. Solar Grazing with Lexie HainNCAT’s AgriSolar Clearinghouse Aims to Make Solar More Accessible to Land ManagersNCAT’s AgriSolar Clearinghouse Brings Together Solar and AgricultureAgriSolar ClearinghouseSoil for Water Other Resources: Sprout City FarmsJack’s Solar GardenColorado Agrivoltaic Learning Center Contact Stacie Peterson at stacieb@ncat.org Please compl

In this episode of Voices from the Field, NCAT Sustainable Agriculture Specialist Martin Guerena, who works out of NCAT’s office in Davis, California, has a conversation with Patrick O’Neill of Soil Health Services in Alamosa, Colorado. They discuss Patrick’s projects, including consulting with farmers on cover crops systems, volunteer work with the Rio Grande Farm Park, and a conservation district project that focuses on fungal-dominated compost.Related ATTRA Resources: Soil Other Resources: How to Make Liquid Extract from Live, Fungal-Based Compost for Your Garden or Farm National Association of Conservation Districts. Patrick O’Neill Biography Dr. David C. Johnson YouTube Channel Rio Grande Farm Park Contact Martin Guerena at marting@ncat.org.  Please complete a brief survey to let us know your thoughts about the content of this podcast.  You can get in touch with NCAT/ATTRA specialists and find access our trusted, practical sustainable-agriculture publications, webinars, videos, and other resources at ATT

This episode of Voices from the Field is the second of a two-part series about a new project called the Texas Soil Wealth Alliance.  NCAT’s team on the project – Climate Smart Agriculture Coordinator Elise Haschke and Sustainable Agriculture Specialists Robert Maggiani and Darron Gaus – talk with others involved in the project. They discuss the Texas Soil Wealth Alliance’s starting goals, the problems it is addressing, and how TSWA works jointly with other organizations and producers to resolve the major issues brought to the forefront by agriculture and climate.  Related ATTRA Resources: A Look at the Texas Soil Wealth Alliance Soil Healthy Soil for a Wealthy Tomorrow Managing Soils for Water: How Five Principles of Soil Health Support Water Infiltration and Storage Watch: NCAT Releases Soil Health 101 Series Soil for Water Contact Elise Haschke, Robert Maggiani, and Darron Gaus at eliseh@ncat.org, robertm@ncat.org, and darrong@ncat.org. Please complete a brief survey to let us know your thoughts about the c

This episode of Voices from the Field is the first of a two-part series on a new project called the Texas Soil Wealth Alliance. NCAT’s team on the project – Climate Smart Agriculture Coordinator Elise Haschke and Sustainable Agriculture Specialists Robert Maggiani and Darron Gaus – join with other organizations and producers involved in the project to spread the word.Related ATTRA Resources:·        Soil·        Health Soil for a Wealthy Tomorrow ·        Managing Soils for Water: How Five Principles of Soil Health Support Water Infiltration and Storage·        Watch: NCAT Releases Soil Health 101 Series·        Soil for WaterContact Elise Haschke, Robert Maggiani, and Darron Gaus at eliseh@ncat.org, robertm@ncat.org, and darrong@ncat.org.Please complete a brief survey to let us know your thoughts about the content of this podcast.  You can get in touch with NCAT/ATTRA specialists and find access our trusted, practical sustainable-agriculture publications, webinars, videos, and other resources at ATTRA.NCAT.O