Environment

A ranch is threatened by the Maria Fire as it explodes to 8,000 acres on its first night on November 1, 2019 near Somis, California. (Photo by David McNew/Getty Images)

As Wildfire Season Nears, Many California Farmers Can’t Get Fire Insurance

May 10, 2021

After years of devastating wildfires, many commercial insurers aren’t renewing farmers’ policies. The state may step in to help.

Op-ed: We Don’t Need a ‘Moonshot’ for Faux Burgers—We Need To Hold ‘Big Meat’ Accountable.

By Sophia Murphy

May 5, 2021

beef cows grazing instead of investing in a fake meat moonshot

Carbon Markets Stand to Reward ‘No-Till’ Farmers. But Most Are Still Tilling the Soil.

By Gosia Wozniacka

May 3, 2021

no-till corn planting in Albany, Missouri. (Photo CC-licensed by the University of Missouri CAFNR)

‘Percy vs. Goliath’ Is a Cautionary Tale of Corporate Control in Agriculture

By Lynne Curry

April 30, 2021

Christopher Walken as Percy Schmeiser in a still from Percy vs. Goliath. (Photo courtesy Saban Films)

Farming Through the Climate Emergency

By Caitlyn Hachmyer

April 22, 2021

The author holding very dry soil in April 2021, when in years past the soil would be much wetter.

What Carey Gillam Learned Through Years of Investigating Monsanto

By Anna Lappé

April 21, 2021

Op-ed: The Monarch Butterfly Emergency Unfolding Before Our Eyes

By Stephanie Kurose

April 21, 2021

Op-ed: The High Cost of Cheap McDonald’s Fries

By Winona LaDuke and Donald Carr

April 15, 2021

A helicopter sprays pesticides on a potato field owned by RD Offutt in Minnesota's Pineland Sands region. (Photo credit: EWG)

A Huge New Chicken CAFO in West Virginia Has Stoked Community Resistance

By Lisa Held

April 7, 2021

Can California’s Organic Vegetable Farmers Unlock the Secrets of No-Till Farming?

By Gosia Wozniacka

March 30, 2021

Transplanting melons in to high-residue beds on Full Belly Farm. (Photo courtesy of Full Belly Farm)

Op-ed: Water Pollution in Iowa Is Environmental Injustice

By Chris Jones

March 26, 2021

Water runs off a farm in Iowa. (Photo credit: Lynn Betts / NRCS)

New Study Shows the Growing Risks of Pesticide Poisonings

By Anna Lappé

March 25, 2021

Poison pest control chemicals sprayed on a field in the Salinas Valley, California.

20 Hotspots to Start Fixing Nitrogen Pollution in Agriculture

By Lisa Held

March 23, 2021

A tractor spraying nitrogen based fertilizer on farm fields

As Coffee Rust Reaches Hawaii, Farmers Prepare for a Devastating Blow

By Twilight Greenaway

March 17, 2021

A woman harvests coffee on Kona. (Photo credit: Christopher Michel)

What Will it Take for Farmers to Grow More Organic Cotton?

By Nicole Rasul

March 15, 2021

Op-ed: Using Commercial Bumble Bees as Pollinators Is Putting Wild Bees at Risk

By Matt Kelly

March 12, 2021

Bombus terrestris in flight. (Photo CC-licensed by Paul van de Velde)

Small Farmers Are Struggling After the Texas Big Freeze

By Andy Hirschfeld

March 9, 2021

Frozen broccoli in a small farmers' plot during the Texas Big Freeze. (Photo CC-licensed by Diann Bayes)

As Food Scrap Collection Peaks, NYC Community Compost Sites Face Evictions

By Greta Moran

March 3, 2021

Food scraps at the Lower East Side Ecology Center's compost yard.

What Role Can Vineyards Play in Conserving California’s Biodiversity?

By Annelise Jolley

February 5, 2021

Sheep grazing in Bonterra's vineyards, building the biodiversity and reducing wildfire risk

Beyond Bees, Neonics Damage Ecosystems—and a Push for Policy Change Is Coming

By Lisa Held

February 2, 2021

beekeeper releasing bees in a farm field, which is no doubt littered with neonicotinoid pesticides

There is an Alarming Amount of Microplastics in Farm Soil—and Our Food Supply

By Kate S. Petersen, Environmental Health News

January 27, 2021

a spoon holiding microplastics recovered from agricultural lands

Our Future Food Supply Depends on Endangered Wild Crops

By Gosia Wozniacka

January 25, 2021

A wild crop relative sunflower grows on the side of the highway.

Biden’s Climate Plan Relies on Farmers Who Are Often Climate Skeptics

By Georgina Gustin, InsideClimate News

January 13, 2021

President-elect Joe Biden (R) and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris (L) look on as Tom Vilsack, U.S. President-elect Joe Biden’s nominee to head the Department of Agriculture, delivers remarks at the Queen Theater December 11, 2020 in Wilmington, Delaware.

Why Aren’t USDA Conservation Programs Paying Farmers More to Improve Their Soil?

By Virginia Gewin

January 12, 2021

Vue Her, a Hmong farmer outside Fresno, California. USDA Photo by Lance Cheung

A New Study on Regenerative Grazing Complicates Climate Optimism

By Virginia Gewin

January 6, 2021

A regeneratively grazed beef cow eating grass

Environment

As Wildfire Season Nears, Many California Farmers Can’t Get Fire Insurance

Op-ed: We Don’t Need a ‘Moonshot’ for Faux Burgers—We Need To Hold ‘Big Meat’ Accountable.

Carbon Markets Stand to Reward ‘No-Till’ Farmers. But Most Are Still Tilling the Soil.

‘Percy vs. Goliath’ Is a Cautionary Tale of Corporate Control in Agriculture

Farming Through the Climate Emergency

Thank you for being a loyal reader.

What Carey Gillam Learned Through Years of Investigating Monsanto

Op-ed: The Monarch Butterfly Emergency Unfolding Before Our Eyes

Op-ed: The High Cost of Cheap McDonald’s Fries

A Huge New Chicken CAFO in West Virginia Has Stoked Community Resistance

Can California’s Organic Vegetable Farmers Unlock the Secrets of No-Till Farming?

Op-ed: Water Pollution in Iowa Is Environmental Injustice

New Study Shows the Growing Risks of Pesticide Poisonings

20 Hotspots to Start Fixing Nitrogen Pollution in Agriculture

As Coffee Rust Reaches Hawaii, Farmers Prepare for a Devastating Blow

What Will it Take for Farmers to Grow More Organic Cotton?

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Op-ed: Using Commercial Bumble Bees as Pollinators Is Putting Wild Bees at Risk

Small Farmers Are Struggling After the Texas Big Freeze

As Food Scrap Collection Peaks, NYC Community Compost Sites Face Evictions

What Role Can Vineyards Play in Conserving California’s Biodiversity?

Beyond Bees, Neonics Damage Ecosystems—and a Push for Policy Change Is Coming

There is an Alarming Amount of Microplastics in Farm Soil—and Our Food Supply

Our Future Food Supply Depends on Endangered Wild Crops

Biden’s Climate Plan Relies on Farmers Who Are Often Climate Skeptics

Why Aren’t USDA Conservation Programs Paying Farmers More to Improve Their Soil?

A New Study on Regenerative Grazing Complicates Climate Optimism