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ROBYN METZGER
robynm@ncat.org

Three people work among row crops in an urban garden with hoop house in the backgroundUSDA photo by Christophe Paul

Minnesota Seeking New Members for Emerging Farmers’ Working Group

The Minnesota Department of Agriculture’s (MDA) Emerging Farmers’ Working Group has openings for nine volunteer members for two-year terms. Minnesotans interested in making it easier for new and emerging farmers to create or sustain an…
a field of agave plants under a blue sky with white cloudsCreative Commons by Kirt Edblom

California Explores Agave as Heat- and Drought-Tolerant Alternative Crop

As part of its week-long focus on food and climate change, National Public Radio reported on California agriculture’s interest in agave as an alternative crop. Unlike many other crops, agave can grow with just three inches of water each…
vegetable crops grow beneath solar panes, with woods and sky in backgroundNCAT

New Tool Identifies Optimal Photovoltaic Materials for Agrisolar Performance

Scientists from Swansea University in the United Kingdom have developed a new tool to help identify optimal photovoltaic (PV) materials capable of maximizing crop growth while generating solar power in agrivoltaic installations. The team has…
Photo of seedlings
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Seeding Root Crops

By Audrey Kolde, NCAT Agriculture Specialist As a nongenerational farmer, most of my agricultural experiences before entering the field of farming and food systems had huge impacts on my decision to farm, from childhood memories of wild blackberries…

Father/daughter Team Tackles Sustainable Carbon Venture

How one Southern startup recycles farm waste to purify water, build green, and generate power. As an entrepreneur running a business incubator in the Memphis area, Bryan Eagle knew nothing about the organic charcoal product known as biochar.…
Matt Steiman showing us the 150,000-gallon anaerobic digester tank at Dickenson College Organic Farm.
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A Mid-Scale Anaerobic Biodigester Creates On-Farm Renewable Energy

By Chris Lent, NCAT Agriculture Specialist Finding ways to turn “waste materials” into useful resources on the farm has always fascinated me. On my farm, I tried to reuse and recycle resources as much as possible to close the off-farm input…

For one Montana rancher, success starts in the soil

Combining worms and biochar has big potential for soil health In the dry, rugged hills of Eastern Montana, third-generation rancher Steve Charter has managed to carve out a living practicing his own brand of regenerative agriculture. It starts…
NCAT's Linda Coffey works with sheep during a training.NCAT

Program Expanded for Women Beginning Sustainable Livestock Farms

‘Women, Livestock, and the Land’ Adds Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana, Florida, and Georgia JACKSON, MS – Women who are beginning sustainable livestock operations in five Gulf-region states will soon have the chance to join a program…

Biochar Is Key to Cascading Benefits in Innovative Carbon Chicken Project

Fifth-generation Arkansas farmer Jody Hardin was introduced to a potentially game-changing soil additive through a USDA Conservation Innovation Grant in 2011. That’s when Hardin began studying biochar—a charcoal-like material that can be…