Restorative agriculture...

[Greg David]

Good morning,

Here is a very interesting article about the need for restorative agriculture. 

I might add, another need for change in agriculture, is the dependence of industrial ag on fossil fuel input to survive. When the cost of fossil fuel rises or availability is less easy, the industrial model of ag will suffer greatly and food prices will rise accordingly.

A link to the article is below and below that is the story at a glance 

Greg

https://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2018/10/07/dirt-to-soil-family-journey-into-regenerative-agriculture.aspx?utm_source=dnl&utm_medium=email&utm_content=art1&utm_campaign=20181007Z1_UCM&et_cid=DM239137&et_rid=438499473

STORY AT-A-GLANCE 

• The challenge facing most farmers today is that conventional agriculture has decimated the topsoil with tilling and synthetic fertilizers, which disrupt and destroy the microbial life necessary to grow nutrient-dense food
• Mycorrhizal fungi grow in healthy soils and are responsible for nutrient transfers between plants and soil biology. The most critical thing in a plant’s life is its relationship with mycorrhizal fungi, which is why tillage and synthetic chemicals should be avoided
• The five basic principles for building a healthy soil ecosystem are: not disturbing the soil microbiome, protecting the soil surface with cover crops, diversification, maintaining living roots in the ground as long as possible and integrating livestock and insects
• For change to occur, farmers must decide they want to change, and consumers must demand nutrient-dense foods produced in a regenerative manner that benefits the ecosystem as a whole
• The farm program keeps farmers trapped in the conventional model, which destroys soil — an essential resource — and locks them into a monocrop system with dwindling financial returns

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