Eric Toensmeier is the author of several books focused on perennial cropping systems, biodiversity, and nutrition. His research, writing and experience, have led him to be a contributor to Project Drawdown, an appointed lecturer at Yale University and an international trainer. His book, The Carbon Farming Solution has been a valuable resource for building my… Continue reading Reflections From Meeting Eric Toensmeier
Category: Farming
Crop Diversification in America’s Corn Belt
This case study was written to accompany my Nuffield Farming Scholarship journey and report and accompanies my recent blog: Helping Companies To Scale Up Regenerative Farming: Lessons from the Sustainable Food Lab. Key takeaways The Crop Diversification in the Corn Belt initiative is a project that’s been run by the Sustainable Food Lab since 2016.… Continue reading Crop Diversification in America’s Corn Belt
Scaling Regen. Ag: Lessons from the Sustainable Food Lab
In Vermont, I met with Elizabeth Reeves from the Sustainable Food Lab, an organisation that works to implement large-scale sustainability change in the mainstream food system. We discussed their experience in working to build a more regenerative agricultural system, engaging conventional farmers and good companies.
Visiting the Rodale Institute: a 40-year comparison of organic vs conventional farming
A write up of my visit to the Rodale Institute’s main campus, a 386-acre certified organic farm in Pennsylvania.
My Nuffield Scholarship: A Summary
While I’m still in the messy depths of writing up my Nuffield Farming Scholarship report, I was recently asked to share an Executive Summary to go with the programme of the Annual Conference, taking place on 14-16 November 2023. So while there may still be further refinements, I’m also posting this here. The title of… Continue reading My Nuffield Scholarship: A Summary
Flying Cloud Farm
This is the first of several case studies to be published, which accompany my Nuffield Farming Scholarship journey and report. Flying Cloud Farm near Asheville, North Carolina, produces organically grown vegetables, fruits, and flowers. Produce is sold from a roadside stand, local farmers’ market and a weekly CSA scheme. On a warm August afternoon, I… Continue reading Flying Cloud Farm
A Day In The Life…
I was asked by a work colleague to write a “day in the life” blog post for our website, which I thought I’d post here too: I’m the General Manager at the Farm Carbon Toolkit (FCT), a role that oversees our operations. This includes finances, human resources, and communications – and working to make sure… Continue reading A Day In The Life…
Demystifying farm carbon offsetting: three watch-outs for farmers
This piece was first posted here on the FCT website. There’s a rise in farmers and landowners interested in getting paid for carbon sequestration. Yet in the UK, an absence of robust guidance, protocols and industry experience makes this space feel like the “wild west”. Farmers are at risk of being misled, while NGOs and… Continue reading Demystifying farm carbon offsetting: three watch-outs for farmers
Thinking regeneratively
I’ve written about regenerative agriculture a couple of times recently (here and here) as I explore how this way of thinking can influence our food systems. In this piece, I’m sharing some perspectives on what it means to think regeneratively more broadly. These are personal musings, but much of the inspiration draws from my work… Continue reading Thinking regeneratively
Eight questions for the regenerative agriculture movement
Following my recent blog exploring the opportunity that regenerative agriculture offers as a shared ambition for the food and farming sector, here, I share eight questions I’m currently holding about regenerative agriculture. A little context. In addition to my work at sustainability non-profit Forum for the Future, I’m excited to be doing a Nuffield Farming… Continue reading Eight questions for the regenerative agriculture movement
Regenerative agriculture: a shared ambition for the supply chain?
This blog was first published on the Forum for the Future website. I’m reposting a slightly edited version here. There’s excitement and hope stirring around regenerative agriculture with many organisations putting it into their strategies. So what is regenerative agriculture and could it offer a shared ambition for the food and farming sector? This is… Continue reading Regenerative agriculture: a shared ambition for the supply chain?
While living through unprecedented losses of wildlife, Knepp offers us hope
This piece also appears on Ecohustler right here. The announcement of newborn Royalty this week quickly displaced a stark headline that reminded us about the unprecedented destruction of wildlife happening today. The latest global assessment, the most comprehensive to date, found that one million animal and plant species are threatened with extinction within decades. Inextricably… Continue reading While living through unprecedented losses of wildlife, Knepp offers us hope
Part II: Current Action on Feed Sustainability
This blog is reposted – it was first published on Forum for the Future’s website. This is the second of a three-part blog series on the Path to a Better Animal Feed System. In the last blog, I outlined why action on animal feed sustainability is urgent and gave a sense of the future direction for monogastric and ruminant… Continue reading Part II: Current Action on Feed Sustainability
Part I: Why pay attention to Animal Feed
This is the first part of a three-part piece that was first published on Forum for the Future’s website. For over a year I’ve been deep in the world of animal feed, working with companies in the food and feed industry and colleagues at Forum for the Future. In the Feed Compass project, we’ve been exploring the impacts… Continue reading Part I: Why pay attention to Animal Feed
Agroforestry: where trees, farming and biodiversity get together
This summer I’ve taken the opportunity to learn more about agroforestry. In August I spent a day at Wakelyns Agroforestry Farm in Suffolk with the UK Agroforestry Network, hearing from a variety of UK projects. Then in September, an agroforestry weekend course with Professor Martin Wolfe, hosted by Huxhams Cross Farm in Dartington. Over the… Continue reading Agroforestry: where trees, farming and biodiversity get together
Here come the robots: precision and regenerative farming
On the horizon, a revolution in farming technologies promises to transform the ways in which we produce our food. This shift can dramatically reduce the volume of chemical inputs used and if we get it right, supports a transition towards a more regenerative approach to farming: one that builds healthier soils and increases biodiversity. The… Continue reading Here come the robots: precision and regenerative farming
Sustainable Intensification
This is an essay about sustainable intensification, a goal in farming whereby yields are increased without causing harm to the environment or cultivating more land. It’s one of many approaches that will help secure food for our future generations. The essay explores its potential role and is divided into three parts. Part 1 provides some… Continue reading Sustainable Intensification