These groups of like-minded farmers, ranchers and producers are sharing what works, what they’ve found and challenges along the way.
Supplier Spotlight
SIMPLi Regenerative Organic Certified Quinoa
Many grain crops are farmed as a monoculture today, extracting the same nutrients from the soil repeatedly with every crop harvest. “Instead of growing quinoa as a monoculture crop, we consider the entire crop rotation,” says SIMPLi founder Sarela Herrada.
Thoughtfully planning crop rotations represents a key principle of regenerative agriculture, building soil health instead of degrading it. This approach is also the foundation for how SIMPLi grows their Regenerative Organic Certified (ROC) quinoa. They rotate quinoa cultivation with lupini beans, oats and potatoes. Lupini beans are vital to building soil health as they deposit nitrogen in the soil, improving quality over time.
SIMPLi’s small but nimble team has boots on the ground in countries like Peru and Paraguay, working directly with quinoa farmers. They begin by assessing whether quinoa could thrive in a particular ecosystem and farming community. Next, they partner with local growers and support them in achieving Regenerative Organic Certification (ROC). SIMPLi believes there are benefits to indigenous and traditional farming practices, and that it’s important to work with farmers who are already implementing practices that promote soil health. ROC ingredients not only promote soil health, but this particular regenerative agriculture certification also requires social welfare measures such as guaranteeing price premiums for farmers and ensuring worker welfare and community development funds. SIMPLi quinoa, for example, is fair trade.
“I have been a quinoa producer since my grandparents, since my father. And what has always motivated me is that we can show this Andean grain to the world and not only benefit ourselves in the Puno region. That is why I am helping more districts, more communities to organize themselves, to get involved in this entrepreneurial work and to market their products at better prices throughout the Puno region,” says Mario Miranda, SIMPLi’s community manager in Peru.
SIMPLi’s Regenerative Organic Certified quinoa is an excellent example of center-store staples innovating supply chains and promoting regenerative agriculture. Check out their red, white and tri-color quinoa in Whole Foods Market aisles in Mid Atlantic, Florida, So Pac and South regions.
Straus Family Creamery
Working with the Climate Collaborative to study the carbon farming plan and practices put in place in partnership with the Marin Carbon Project, Straus Dairy analyzed both the environmental and financial impacts of their 500 acre dairy farm and what they found was overwhelmingly positive.
Straus’ Key Findings:
- Consistent Increase in Production: Over four years, the biomass in carbon farmed pastures increased consistently despite a serious drought and irregular rainfall patterns.
- Biomass Yields: Carbon-farmed ranchland produced anywhere from 200 to 600 more pounds of dry-matter forage weight per acre.
- Cost Savings: The additional biomass produced is conservatively estimated to reduce the demand of outside feed by $100 per acre!
Satellite symphony: how Atellites, compost and cows made the business case for regenerative farming
Shepherd’s Grain
In a series of case studies by Ag of the Middle, Larry Lev and G.W. Stevenseon outline the history and economics of how Northwest wheat grower, Shepherd’s Grain, grows, harvest and develops high-end wheat flours that fosters soil health and restores soil degredation from years of monoculture farming in the region.
Since 2008, Shepherds Grain has experimented with new wheat varieties, crop rotations and direct-seed, no till cultivation practices to deliver innovative grain blends to Northwest commercial and retail bakers.
Stemple Creek Ranch
In a moving video produced by Civil Eats, fourth generation rancher, Loren Poncia, shares his experience, imparts his land management philosophy and shares how Stemple Creek Ranch has weathered challenges from the COVID-19 pandemic in Tomales, California.
“There’s definitely a lot of power in consumers being able to vote with their dollars, and that’s [what I] hope comes out of this COVID experience, that people really connect to local producers.”
More supplier stories
These groups of like-minded farmers, ranchers and producers are sharing what works, what they’ve found and challenges along the way.
American Farmland Trust’s Soil health cases studies
WIth the support of the NRCS Conservation Innovovation Grant, American Farmland Trust documented nine case studies in soil health innovation across the US in their Accelerating Soil Health Adoption by Quanitfying Economic and Environmtental Outcomes and Overcoming Barriers on Rented Land report.
Carbon Cowboys
Hear the stories of cattle ranchers across the United States as they work to restore grasslands and graze cattle through rotational grazing practices dubbed adaptive multi-paddock grazing or mob grazing, for short.
Long Island Soil Champions
Cornell Cooperative Extension, along with American Farmland Trust has worked closely with suppliers to reduce nitgogen application rates and incorporate conservation tillage and cover crop techniques on sweet corn, potatoes and other speciality crops.
