By Ellie Kuckelman for The Reader.
Broadcast version by Deborah Van Fleet for Nebraska News Connection reporting for the Solutions Journalism Network-Public News Service Collaboration

On a small farm in Omaha, spring is making its presence felt. Patches of snow melt, flowers rise from their beds and a pair of Canadian geese nest in the tilled fields.

"It's the same pair, and they come back every year for about three weeks," said Mark Brannen, co-owner of Benson Bounty.

From the outside, the 1.5-acre homestead, bordered by homes and a car lot, may not seem like much. But since 2015, Mark Brannen and his wife, Michelle, have managed to foster a complex ecosystem amid the variety of herbs, vegetables and other produce they grow and sell. By rotating crops, planting cover crops, using homemade compost and limiting outside inputs, they've created a sustainable system - and they've done it using many of the key principles of an agricultural approach known as biodynamic farming.

"One of the biggest things for me ... is the focus on the farm as a whole system," Brannen said.

Biodynamic farming utilizes the relationships between plants, animals and soil to turn one's waste into another's energy and eliminate the need for chemical fertilizers or pesticides. Practices include only treating crops with compost and water as well as setting aside land for biodiversity and natural habitats.

Not only do these practices create more sustainable farms, but they also could help fight climate change. Organic farming, closely related to biodynamic farming, requires significantly less energy and produces less greenhouse gasses, such as nitrous oxide and methane, than conventional agriculture. And while these practices represent a tiny portion of all farms in the U.S., interest is growing and advocates say the mission couldn't be more important.

"It's about healing the earth - the plant communities, the animal communities, as well as the human community," said Evrett Lunquist, director of Certification for Demeter Association, Inc., and co-owner of the Common Good biodynamic farm near Raymond, Nebraska.

The Missing Piece

While Lunquist studied agronomy as a college student many years ago, he came across biodynamic agriculture in a comparison study between two farms. The idea that farms could work with, rather than against, the environment clicked with him.

"It was the piece that had been missing in my college studies," Lunquist said.

The early concepts of biodynamic farming were articulated in 1924 when Austrian scientist and philosopher Rudolf Steiner gave a series of lectures to European farmers who were noticing a quick decline in soil conditions, crop quality and animal health after using chemical pesticides.

Steiner presented the farm as a living organism sustained by the relationships between its crop growth, soil vitality and livestock. In 1928, The Demeter Biodynamic® Standard for certification was established and is currently regulated by Demeter International.

Today the number of biodynamic farms is on the rise, increasing globally by more than 47% between 2000 and 2018. There are currently about 140 certified farms in the U.S., according to Lunquist, and just two in Nebraska. Those numbers don't include farms such as Benson Bounty, which implements many biodynamic practices but is not certified.

The Demeter Biodynamic Farm Standard requires the whole farm be certified, not just a specific crop, which could be the case on an organic farm where single fields can be certified at a time.

While organic certification mainly outlines the materials that can and cannot be applied to the soil and its crop, biodynamic certification looks at how all the components of the farm interact, outlining both requirements and principles.

In addition, biodynamic farms must dedicate at least 10% of their land as a wildland reserve, generating the farm's own fertility. They also use biodynamic preparations, such as field sprays, composting and cow manure, to fertilize crops and control pests with farm-generated solutions rather than insecticides. The end result is not only higher-quality food, but also an improved ecosystem as the farm recycles its own resources.

"Instead of having a huge carbon footprint, you're actually refocusing on having a carbon-negative footprint," Lunquist said.

For Beth Corymb, the approach aligns perfectly with Nebraska farmers' long-held commitment to stewardship of the land. She and her husband, Nathan, run Meadowlark Hearth, a 540-acre biodynamic farm in Scottsbluff. About 150 acres of the farm is a nature reserve. In 2010 the Corymbs also started a biodynamic seed company.

Corymb said biodynamic farming encourages farmers "to look at the earth as a living being."

"That thought process helps to approach the earth in a different way," she said.

Though the number of certified biodynamic farms is tiny in comparison to organic (an industry that comprised 17,445 certified farms in 2022), its practices can still have value without a certification.

For Brannen, biodynamic practices have made a big difference in his soil health. By composting his farm's plant and animal waste, as well as using sustainable planting practices, he's not only getting the nutrients he needs but is also promoting a lively ecosystem below the soil.

"If you just worry about creating a healthy environment for soil microbes, then everything else kind of takes care of itself," Brannen said.

Lunquist said that's the fundamental inspiration behind biodynamics - recognizing that soil produces more than just a chemical reaction.

"If you're taking chemical fertilizers and putting it on the soil, you effectively have a hydroponic crop production system," Lunquist said. "There is nothing that the soil is providing to the health and vitality of the plant."

Buying Biodynamic

Biodynamic products can be purchased through a variety of channels.

The Corymbs sell their produce at farmers' markets, as well as through Community Supported Agriculture, or CSA. In these farm-run programs, consumers purchase shares of the coming harvest's crop in advance and then during harvesting season they receive weekly boxes of fresh produce.

While Lunquist and his wife have used farmers' markets and CSA in the past, their current channels consist of email lists, retail stores and grocery co-ops, such as Open Harvest in Lincoln, which has sold their eggs, produce, meat and plant seedlings for more than 24 years.

Benson Bounty sells its herbs to local Omaha markets and restaurants. The Brannens also send out weekly emails for what they have in stock.

"We have a lot of people who shop from us in the neighborhood, so they will bike or walk down," Brannen said.

He said customers have noticed a difference in the herbs from their farm - they are fresher than the majority of herbs in the U.S., which are imported from foreign markets.

Lunquist also sees the value in buying locally, especially when customers become acquainted with the farm's name.

"When you eat the food, it's nourishment," Lunquist said. "But then there's another nourishment that comes from eating food where you have either been to the farm or you know the farmer. It is part of the experience."

Obstacles to Biodynamics

Because biodynamic farms are diverse and self-sustaining, they often require more labor than conventional farms that specialize in specific crops or animals.

Space can also be an issue.

"One of the challenges is being able to produce all the inputs that we need here on the farm because we are on a smaller space," Brannen said.

While Benson Bounty has chickens, housing more animals such as cattle and goats would be impossible without more room.

Organic and biodynamic farming also often produce lower yields than conventional farms - as much as about 20% lower, according to a 2014 study from the University of California, Berkeley.

This has led to scrutiny of whether alternatives to conventional farming practices should play a larger role in the global agricultural system. However, studies show despite lower yields, biodynamic farming is more profitable, creates more jobs and is better for the environment. Additional research to close the yield gap, or changing consumption patterns to more plant-based diets, could make alternatives much more palatable.

Public policy could also help transition more farms to sustainable practices as the global population, demand for food, and the effects of climate change increase.

"We are looking forward to more sustainable growth," Lunquist said.

'A Continual Learning Process'

The Brannens' first taste of biodynamic farming came while working on an organic farm in Panama in 2012. Eleven years later, they continue to implement the biodynamic practices they learned there as well as share the knowledge they've cultivated with others.

The rewards have been bountiful. They're shielded from the risks of outside markets while creating a healthy, productive farm that's been their full-time job for close to a decade. Now their three kids, ages 8, 6 and 2, are helping by planting crops, churning compost, collecting eggs or doing any number of other odd jobs.

It's harder this way, Brannen said. Working without shortcuts means more trial and error, but the more you listen and adapt, the more the land can give back."That's what farming is," Brannen said, "a continual learning process."


Ellie Kuckelman wrote this article for The Reader.


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Native grasslands are the most threatened ecosystem in North America.

A South Dakota advocacy group hopes its educational campaign will reach a wider audience after receiving a regional award. The South Dakota Grassland Coalition's recent television public service announcement, part of its "Where Good Things Grow" campaign, recently won an Upper Midwest Regional Emmy award.

Quality grasslands help clean air and water, sequester carbon, reduce erosion and provide wildlife habitat.

Ron Nichols, one of the campaign's creators, produced the television spot.

"The television spots in particular are designed to help people understand that we are all connected to the grasslands and that they're definitely worth protecting and improving their health," Nichols explained.

He said it was "affirming" the film's message resonated with the region and met the high standards of an Emmy Award. Nichols also hopes it will educate people about threats to grasslands including conversion to cropland, woody encroachment and the effects of poor management.

The one-minute film features footage of rancher Kelsey Scott and her nephews caretaking land on the Cheyenne River Reservation. Nichols emphasized he appreciated the opportunity to film a local rancher practicing good grassland management.

"Rather than going out and trying to get an actor, these spots are genuine," Nichols stressed. "They really reflect what's happening out on the land in South Dakota."

Along with the rancher's cattle, the PSA includes images of sage grouse, buffalo, pronghorn and a diverse sampling of grassland plant species.

Joe Dickie and his son, Charlie, filmed the scenes and images featured over several years traveling through South Dakota's grasslands. He is glad to showcase the results of regenerative ranching practices.

"Running cattle, resting the land, not overgrazing, being really aware of riparian areas along water," Dickie outlined. "Really just doing the right things for the environment."

The PSA aired more than 4,000 times this year.


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Ocean advocates are hailing a federal judge's decision that deemed a nationwide permit for industrial aquaculture structures unlawful.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' approval of the permit for finfish nets and cages was found to violate several environmental laws.

Center for Food Safety Legal Director George Kimbrell called that a win against corporate interests pushing to industrialize the open ocean.

"It's an important victory protecting our oceans," said Kimbrell, "their native ecosystems, and the communities that rely on them."

Still, Kimbrell said the court ordered both sides to return to court later this month with a plan on how to remedy the matter.

The ruling comes as an increasing number of Maine communities adopt emergency aquaculture moratoriums, but backers of large-scale aquaculture say it's needed to meet a growing seafood demand.

Maine's abundant coastline and working waterfronts make it an ideal place for an aquaculture business, and numerous small-scale shellfish and marine plant farms are boosting local economies.

But commercial fishermen say the growth of large, foreign-owned fish farms endangers both the ocean and their livelihoods. Kimbrell said a battle to privatize the ocean is underway.

"Taking parts of the ocean and saying, 'you can't fish here, and instead this is going to be an area we're going to allow a corporation to use exclusively for a certain number of years,'" said Kimbrell. "In this case, these are 10-year permits that would have been established."

Kimbrell said federal courts covering the Gulf of Mexico previously struck down efforts to establish industrial aquaculture there.

He said despite intense lobbying efforts by proponents, Congress has never passed a law authorizing large-scale aquaculture in federal waters.





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By Lauren Kobley for Cronkite News.
Broadcast version by Alex Gonzalez for Arizona News Connection reporting for the Solutions Journalism Network-Public News Service Collaboration

Jesse Garcia was first introduced to farming in his grandmother’s garden. As a child, he recalls not quite understanding the true purpose of growing and how important it is.

It was in high school that he first started taking an interest in farming and agriculture. After graduating, he had a number of jobs, but he did not feel passionate about any of them. It was then that he found the Ajo Center for Sustainable Agriculture.

Arizona farmers are aging. With a hope to sustain farming practices in the state, particularly within Indigenous communities, the co-executive directors of Ajo CSA, Sterling Johnson and Nina Sajovec, are training the next generation of growers through their beginning farmer apprenticeship program.

As of the 2017 Census of Agriculture from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, 59% of farmers in Arizona were Indigenous, more than any other state. The vast majority of farmers in the U.S. are over the age of 35, with an average age 57.5. With the average age of farmers increasing, advocates say it is important to train the next generation of farmers to maintain the state’s agriculture industry.

“Arizona did things backwards. We became a state. We created a job force. But, we didn’t include farming,” Johnson said. “The wrong assumption was that farming was going to stay within the family, but things have changed. The ways of thinking have changed, the way we do things have changed and there’s no one else to take over.”

The Ajo CSA program trains three to five aspiring farmers like Garcia each cycle in Ajo and on the Tohono O’odham Nation. The eight- to 11-month program allows apprentices to visit local farms, establish their own growing space and attend workshops to learn about local sustainable farming techniques.

The apprentices practice growing and harvesting different varieties of crops each season, including lettuce, tomatoes, chiles, squash, beans and corn. Because the farm is a teaching farm, the produce is not sold, but the organization saves the seeds to distribute throughout the community and use for later growing periods.

Johnson was born and raised on the Tohono O’odham Nation in a ranching and rodeo family. He has overseen more than 40 apprentices and youth interns, 70% of whom are Tohono O’odham.

“I’m very excited that we get to teach them (the apprentices) our ways, and we get to promote our ways. Not just to the outside, but to our people. They should be proud of who they are and where they come from,” Johnson said.

On the Tohono O’odham Nation, the apprentices practice climate-smart agriculture and dryland farming. The three main objectives of climate-smart agriculture are to sustainably increase productivity, adapt to climate change and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Dryland farming is the practice of producing sustainably by using the soil’s own moisture and limited irrigation to plant and grow.

“The soils are the key factor in order to have a good nutritious crop. If you overtax those soils, you lose all the nutrients and all the natural things that are in the soils that would be healthy for us as people,” said Michael Kotutwa Johnson, a Hopi farmer and professor at the University of Arizona.

Indigenous farmers have developed and practiced these sustainable farming techniques for generations and they were almost lost, he said. One of the reasons they are successful is because of the adaptation seeds have undergone through the years to grow in desert-like climates.

“Our seeds are like us. They are human beings to the same extent that they also need to be out and adapt to these different environmental conditions. You have organizations … and they’re just holding on to those seeds. They’re also not raising them in the places where they’re from, so they’re losing their chance to adapt,” UArizona’s Johnson said.

Opportunities like the Ajo CSA apprenticeship program give young farmers the chance to get hands-on experience to develop climate-smart agricultural skills and get in touch with Indigenous culture.

“Farming’s a tradition, just like Grandma’s recipe. You don’t want Grandma’s recipe to die out and go away. You got to pass it on,” Gilbert Villegas Jr., an Ajo CSA apprentice, said.

Not only does the apprenticeship build their skills, it prepares them to farm their own land and grow on a larger scale.
Since finding Ajo CSA seven years ago, Garcia said he has learned invaluable information about farming that he has been able to apply to his own farm on the Tohono O’odham Nation.

“Working with Ajo kind of gives you the whole insight of how to run the business: How to apply for grants, how to get partners, how to use those partners, how to organize events – anything that can kind of help your business grow,” he said.

He said building his roots in farming has been a challenge, but he has had incredible mentors like Sterling Johnson that have helped guide him along the way. Garcia now comes back to Ajo CSA as a volunteer and mentor. He hopes to have an impact on those who are in the program now.

“It starts with you as a person. You have to want to change and try to bring everything (the farming techniques) back. If you don’t see the big picture then what’s the point of you trying to spread it?” Garcia asked. “There’s always somebody out there you can go and keep passing it on … hopefully somebody hears.”

Looking toward the future of the program, Sterling Johnson hopes that Native American traditional agricultural practices are given their proper recognition, acknowledgement and respect.

“This is our way of keeping our traditions alive. … We pray for those who are on the ground and those who are on top guiding in this modern world as we need agriculture to have a future for all of us,” Johnson said.


Lauren Kobley wrote this article for Cronkite News.


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