Biochar is one of the most promising tools to build soil organic matter, remove carbon from the atmosphere, and improve soil health. That promise has prompted growing support for federal legislation to increase biochar research.
Biochar is a form of charcoal designed for use in soil. It is produced by heating biomass in the absence of oxygen – a process called pyrolysis. Potential sources of biomass feedstock include:
- dead wood, thinnings, and slash removed from forests to reduce wildfire risk
- grass and tree crops
- the portion of crop residues not needed to prevent soil erosion
Biochar is not new. Biochar from prairie and forest fires is a significant portion of the organic matter in the world’s agricultural soils. A growing body of research suggests that appropriately designed biochar can improve soil structure and health, enhance soil water-holding capacity, improve soil fertility, and increase yields while building soil carbon and organic matter.
Building and maintaining soil organic matter is challenging in annual cropping systems. Most crop residue left on soil breaks down in a few years. Even practices that add carbon like cover crops can stimulate microorganisms that decompose biomass, limiting the net gain in soil organic matter.
The unique promise of biochar is that it provides “recalcitrant” soil carbon that lasts for hundreds to thousands of years. That is why harvesting a portion of crop residue to produce biochar to be returned to soil can result in a net increase in soil carbon. Biochar far outlasts crop residue.
Interestingly, biochar can also extend the life of carbon from crop residue, cover crops, and other biomass that remains on the land. An Iowa State University found that the long-term increase in soil carbon several years after application of biochar was twice the carbon embodied in the biochar. Biochar slowed the decomposition of other soil carbon.
Biochar provides farmers, ranchers, and foresters the opportunity to become a powerful part of the solution to climate change. Soil is the globe’s second-largest carbon sink, holding three times as much carbon as the atmosphere. Agricultural soils alone hold about as much carbon as the atmosphere.
Thus, a 10% increase in carbon in agricultural soils across the globe would provide a 10% reduction in atmospheric carbon dioxide – the greenhouse gas most responsible for driving climate change. In addition, research has found that biochar can reduce soil emissions of nitrous oxide, one of the most powerful greenhouse gases contributing to climate change. That also keeps nitrogen in the soil and available to crops.
Biochar has great potential. But to achieve it, critical knowledge gaps must be filled. The research results on biochar have been inconsistent because there are many different types of biochar being applied in varying soils and circumstances. So, we need coordinated research to determine which types of biochar can be beneficial in varying soils and circumstances.
Bipartisan legislation has been proposed to meet that need. The Biochar Research Network Act of 2023 has been introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives as HR 1645 by Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-IA), Kim Schrier (D-WA), Chellie Pingree (D-ME), Dan Newhouse (R-WA), Jimmy Panetta (D-CA), Sean Casten (D-IL), and Josh Harder (D-CA). It was introduced in the U.S. Senate as S.732 by Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Jon Tester (D-MT), John Thune (R-SD), and Sherrod Brown (D-OH).
The Act would establish a national network of up to 20 research sites to test the full range of biochar types across soils, regions, and application methods to assess its potential to enhance carbon sequestration, crop production, resource conservation, and agricultural resilience. It would support research to develop promising approaches to integrating biochar in farming and ranching systems, as well as forestry.
Support for the Act is growing. A long list of organizations, businesses, and individuals have written to the Agriculture Committees of Congress urging that the legislation be incorporated in the upcoming farm bill. NCAT’s Biochar Policy Project has been a leading force in developing and championing the bill. Click here to read the support letter.
Biochar is a win-win solution. It helps farmers, ranchers and foresters build healthy and productive soil and creates new opportunities to earn payments for removing carbon from the atmosphere. It provides a market for combustible materials removed from forests, supporting efforts to reduce wildfires. It offers the basis for building a new industry that creates jobs and opportunities across rural America along with new markets for biomass. And it removes carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, which lessens climate change.
There are many reasons to support biochar, which is why it has drawn bipartisan support at a time when the two major parties seem to rarely come together.
To learn more about the Biochar Research Network Act and how you can lend your voice to the campaign for its passage, contact Chuck Hassebrook at hassebrook@gmail.com.
WATCH: How AgriSolar Helped the Cows Come Home to One Northeast Farm
For more than 150 years Knowlton Family Farms in Grafton, Massachusetts has been a family-owned operation. It’s grown and shrunk over the years, and now is back in a period of expansion thanks to combining solar energy production with agriculture.
The National Center for Appropriate Technology’s (NCAT) AgriSolar Clearinghouse today released its short film “The Cows Come Home,” which shows viewers how the Knowlton family has been able to reintroduce cattle to their farm. Owner Paul Knowlton says the last of their dairy cows were sold in 1995, and now they’ve been able to bring cattle back to the farm to graze among solar panels.
“We really wanted to try to do something different, and we made it happen, it’s a reality, and I couldn’t be more pleased with the results,” Paul Knowlton said. “It was designed with the cows in mind, vegetables in mind, and also we can put a variety of different animals in here for grazing. They [the cows] took to it like fish to water.”
AgriSolar or agrivoltaic partnerships are growing across solar-appropriate farmland in the U.S., providing a new revenue source for farmers, clean energy for surrounding communities, and myriad benefits to crops, livestock, and pollinators.
Knowlton says agrisolar is what has allowed his farm to remain a viable family business.
“Nationwide, this could be a new standard,” Knowlton adds. “The idea of year-round revenue is really, really important. Having a farm that has the ability to survive is just so important. This is a way to keep the farmland going.”
NCAT’s AgriSolar Clearinghouse is connecting businesses, land managers, and researchers with trusted resources to support the growth of co-located solar and sustainable agriculture.
“AgriSolar partnerships are helping to keep family farms in family hands,” said NCAT Energy Director Stacie Peterson, PhD. “We can maximize finite resources for the benefit of communities, the environment, and businesses when agriculture and energy come together.”
Montana Military Veteran Champions the Power of ‘Armed to Farm’ Alumni Network
“Learning to farm is more than a notion,” Armed to Farm alum and Montana farmer-veteran Lawrence Rhone recently told KRQE-TV. “It’s another language.”
Rhone is among nearly 1,000 military veterans who’ve completed the hands-on, intensive Armed to Farm training program. First launched in 2013 through a cooperative agreement with USDA-Rural Development, Armed to Farm is funded in part by ATTRA. That same year, Rhone bought his farm in northeast Montana.
Now, Rhone is a vocal advocate for the Armed to Farm program, and he has said that a unique value of the program is the lasting relationships that have formed among the network of alum. For new farmer veterans just getting started, he said there’s no other program like Armed to Farm.
“Get to an Armed to Farm alumnus or contact NCAT because you have put together a tremendous program that helps you figure out how to break the ice.”
The weeklong Armed to Farm training features farm tours and hands-on activities at a variety of successful farms. Participants learn from seasoned farmers and gain direct experience on livestock, vegetable, fruit, and agritourism operations. Farmer veterans learn how to create a business plan and market their products, access USDA programs, set business goals, and develop mentorships with seasoned farmers.
“We don’t just have classroom time. We leave the classroom and go to farms of veterans who are walking the walk and that is powerful,” said Rhone. “When we went into the military, that’s the same way we did that type of training.”
NCAT Supports Bipartisan Effort to Expand AgriSolar Research
The National Center for Appropriate Technology (NCAT) applauds Senator Martin Heinrich (D-NM) and Senator Mike Braun (R-IN) for introducing a bill that will expand research for agrivoltaics, or agrisolar, which pairs appropriate farmland with solar energy production.
“Expanding agrisolar is all about maximizing our resources to grow both food and renewable energy on the same piece of land, while at the same time diversifying revenue sources for farmers,” said NCAT Executive Director Steve Thompson. “NCAT’s AgriSolar Clearinghouse has spent the last two years working with farmers, land managers, and solar companies to harvest the sun twice. This bipartisan bill will allow us to take agrivoltaics to the next level in this country.”
Agrisolar or agrivoltaic partnerships are growing across solar-appropriate farmland in the U.S., providing a new revenue source for farmers, clean energy for surrounding communities, and myriad benefits to crops, livestock, and pollinators.
The Agrivoltaics Research and Demonstration Act of 2023 will direct $15 million to the U.S. Department of Agriculture for the study of agrisolar systems to develop best practices for farmers, ranchers, solar developers, and communities who want to adopt or expand the use of agrivoltaics.
Supporters of the bill include NCAT, American Farmland Trust, the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition, and the American Solar Grazing Association, among others.
“We applaud Senator Heinrich and Senator Braun for their forward-thinking leadership in introducing this bill,” said Tim Fink, Policy Director for American Farmland Trust. “As the essential transition toward renewable energy accelerates across the country, it must be done in a way that strengthens rural communities and minimizes the footprint on our most productive farmland. This legislation would help advance the potential for agrivoltaics to do both.”
NCAT’s AgriSolar Clearinghouse connects businesses, land managers, and researchers with trusted resources to support the growth of co-located solar and sustainable agriculture. The Clearinghouse includes an interactive atlas of agrisolar sites, funding opportunities and state-specific incentives, an information library with more than 500 peer-reviewed articles, multimedia tools like photos, podcasts, and videos, and one-on-one technical assistance for farmers and solar developers.
NCAT’s Free Farmer-Veteran Training Headed to Massachusetts
The National Center for Appropriate Technology (NCAT) is partnering with New Entry Sustainable Farming Project (NESFP) to bring NCAT’s free Armed to Farm training to the Bay State for the first time. Armed to Farm will take place July 24-28, 2023, in Danvers, Mass. Farmer-veterans will attend classroom sessions and travel to local farms for hands-on learning experiences. The deadline to apply is June 9.
Armed to Farm trainings include an engaging blend of farm tours, hands-on activities, and interactive classroom instruction. NCAT Sustainable Agriculture specialists will teach the training sessions, along with staff from USDA agencies and NESFP. Experienced crop and livestock producers will provide additional instruction.
“We’re eager to bring Armed to Farm to Massachusetts,” said Andy Pressman, NCAT Sustainable Agriculture and Rural Communities Director. “Armed to Farm has served nearly 1,000 veterans in all corners of the country as they start or grow their own sustainable farm business.”
Armed to Farm is a sustainable agriculture training program for military veterans. NCAT, a national nonprofit organization based in Butte, Montana, developed Armed to Farm in 2013 through a cooperative agreement with USDA-Rural Development. Farmer veterans learn how to make a business plan and market their products, how to access USDA programs, set business goals, and develop mentorships with seasoned farmers.
“Armed to Farm was instrumental in helping us learn so much about how to begin our farm,” said program alum Lanette Lepper of Dudley, Massachusetts. “From mistakes to avoid, what crops to grow (or not), and practicalities we never would have thought of ourselves, the experience was invaluable! Just six months after attending, Armstrong Acres was born!”
This training is for military veterans in the Northwest, with selection priority given to Massachusetts residents. The number of participants will be limited. One spouse or farm partner is welcome to attend with a veteran but must submit a separate application.
Applications are available here and are due by June 9, 2023. NCAT will notify selected participants by June 16.
Armed to Farm Massachusetts is supported by USDA’s Office of Partnerships and Public Engagement. Successful applicants may also receive a travel stipend thanks to our partnership with California-based Ranchin’ Vets.
Learn more about NCAT’s Armed to Farm and additional training series at ARMEDTOFARM.ORG.
How You Can Support Biochar Research
Biochar is one of the most promising tools to build soil organic matter, remove carbon from the atmosphere, and improve soil health. That promise has prompted growing support for federal legislation to increase biochar research.
Biochar is a form of charcoal designed for use in soil. It is produced by heating biomass in the absence of oxygen – a process called pyrolysis. Potential sources of biomass feedstock include:
Biochar is not new. Biochar from prairie and forest fires is a significant portion of the organic matter in the world’s agricultural soils. A growing body of research suggests that appropriately designed biochar can improve soil structure and health, enhance soil water-holding capacity, improve soil fertility, and increase yields while building soil carbon and organic matter.
Building and maintaining soil organic matter is challenging in annual cropping systems. Most crop residue left on soil breaks down in a few years. Even practices that add carbon like cover crops can stimulate microorganisms that decompose biomass, limiting the net gain in soil organic matter.
The unique promise of biochar is that it provides “recalcitrant” soil carbon that lasts for hundreds to thousands of years. That is why harvesting a portion of crop residue to produce biochar to be returned to soil can result in a net increase in soil carbon. Biochar far outlasts crop residue.
Interestingly, biochar can also extend the life of carbon from crop residue, cover crops, and other biomass that remains on the land. An Iowa State University found that the long-term increase in soil carbon several years after application of biochar was twice the carbon embodied in the biochar. Biochar slowed the decomposition of other soil carbon.
Biochar provides farmers, ranchers, and foresters the opportunity to become a powerful part of the solution to climate change. Soil is the globe’s second-largest carbon sink, holding three times as much carbon as the atmosphere. Agricultural soils alone hold about as much carbon as the atmosphere.
Thus, a 10% increase in carbon in agricultural soils across the globe would provide a 10% reduction in atmospheric carbon dioxide – the greenhouse gas most responsible for driving climate change. In addition, research has found that biochar can reduce soil emissions of nitrous oxide, one of the most powerful greenhouse gases contributing to climate change. That also keeps nitrogen in the soil and available to crops.
Biochar has great potential. But to achieve it, critical knowledge gaps must be filled. The research results on biochar have been inconsistent because there are many different types of biochar being applied in varying soils and circumstances. So, we need coordinated research to determine which types of biochar can be beneficial in varying soils and circumstances.
Bipartisan legislation has been proposed to meet that need. The Biochar Research Network Act of 2023 has been introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives as HR 1645 by Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-IA), Kim Schrier (D-WA), Chellie Pingree (D-ME), Dan Newhouse (R-WA), Jimmy Panetta (D-CA), Sean Casten (D-IL), and Josh Harder (D-CA). It was introduced in the U.S. Senate as S.732 by Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Jon Tester (D-MT), John Thune (R-SD), and Sherrod Brown (D-OH).
The Act would establish a national network of up to 20 research sites to test the full range of biochar types across soils, regions, and application methods to assess its potential to enhance carbon sequestration, crop production, resource conservation, and agricultural resilience. It would support research to develop promising approaches to integrating biochar in farming and ranching systems, as well as forestry.
Support for the Act is growing. A long list of organizations, businesses, and individuals have written to the Agriculture Committees of Congress urging that the legislation be incorporated in the upcoming farm bill. NCAT’s Biochar Policy Project has been a leading force in developing and championing the bill. Click here to read the support letter.
Biochar is a win-win solution. It helps farmers, ranchers and foresters build healthy and productive soil and creates new opportunities to earn payments for removing carbon from the atmosphere. It provides a market for combustible materials removed from forests, supporting efforts to reduce wildfires. It offers the basis for building a new industry that creates jobs and opportunities across rural America along with new markets for biomass. And it removes carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, which lessens climate change.
There are many reasons to support biochar, which is why it has drawn bipartisan support at a time when the two major parties seem to rarely come together.
To learn more about the Biochar Research Network Act and how you can lend your voice to the campaign for its passage, contact Chuck Hassebrook at hassebrook@gmail.com.
NCAT Offers Free Summer Sustainable Growing Series
The National Center for Appropriate Technology is offering a series of free monthly workshops this summer on how to grow food sustainably.
The workshops are from 10 a.m. to noon at NCAT’s Small-Scale Intensive Farm Training (SIFT) demonstration farm at the nonprofit’s headquarters, located at 3040 Continental Drive in Butte.
May 13: Preparing Your Organic Garden: In conjunction with the Clark Fork Watershed Education Program and Montana Tech’s Earth Month, the SIFT series will begin with a hands-on lesson on composting basics, organic potting mix, organic soil amendments, cover crops, mulching methods, and more. It also will cover scheduling plantings throughout the growing season and the importance of hardening off plants in the Butte area’s often challenging environment.
June 17: Analyzing Your Soil and Creating a Management Plan: This workshop will cover analyzing soil types, conducting infiltration tests, and reviewing soil tests. It will look at different management strategies to address the needs of the soil and develop a plan. It will address tillage and degradation of soils, irrigation and water holding capacities, and develop a custom cover crop mix.
July 22: Benefits of Increasing Biodiversity: This workshop will address the benefits of increased pollinator habitat, integrated pest management, and mitigating risk in cropping strategies by building more biodiverse ecosystems. In this workshop, participants will plant drought-tolerant native pollinators. There also will be a tour of NCAT’s native hedge rows and agrisolar array.
Aug. 19: Saving Seeds and Preserving Food: This workshop will cover selecting heirloom varieties that work well in the Butte area climate and the basics of seed- saving techniques. It also will address the characteristics of vegetables that increase shelf life throughout storage, processing, and preservation methods.
Sept. 16: Choosing Varieties to Grow in Butte: This workshop will feature NCAT’s annual taste test of successful varieties of fruits and vegetables trialed on the SIFT Farm. It will also cover timing, growing tips, and seed selection for high yields in Butte, as well as seed- saving basics for a resilient farm and garden.
To RSVP for the free events, head to NCAT.ORG/EVENTS.
Montana-Grown Food to be Showcased at Farm to School Workshop in Gardiner
Montana-grown and raised foods will take center stage in Gardiner on Friday, April 21, when the National Center for Appropriate Technology (NCAT) joins with Farm to School of Park County, Gardiner Public Schools, and other partnering organizations for the first of three Farm to School workshops.
The workshop will provide general training on Farm to School programs and Montana Harvest of the Month as well as feature the ways Gardiner Public Schools have implemented those programs. There will be a special focus on how rural communities can leverage partnerships to promote Montana foods.
The Montana Harvest of the Month program promotes food grown in the state. Each month, participating sites spotlight a food by serving it in at least one meal, snack, or à la carte offering. Schools and early care programs also offer students taste tests and include the food in lessons and activities.
“That food might be summer squash, which isn’t going to be at the top of most kids’ lunch-time wish list. It’s amazing to see how often kids surprise themselves and really like a food they didn’t think they would,” said NCAT Local Foods Specialist Molly Kirkham. “Kids often aren’t very adventurous when it comes to food. One of the primary goals of Harvest of the Month is simply to expose children — and adults — to new, healthy foods. The other goal is to support Montana’s farmers and ranchers.”
NCAT leads the Montana Harvest of the Month program along with partnering organizations around the state.
Montana Harvest of the Month also is an excellent way to launch or expand a farm-to-school or farm-to-cafeteria program since it provides an easy framework to follow and ready-to-use materials, Kirkham said. And farm to school programs depend on a partnership of school staff and community members that Harvest of the Month can often provide.
Montana Harvest of the Month is open to K-12 schools, early care and education programs, businesses, organizations, and other institutions in the state.
Participants in the April 21 workshop will hear from people involved in farm-to-school initiatives, including food service directors, parents, organizations, producers, and educators. The workshop will also include training based on participants’ role in the community.
Kirkham encourages anyone interested in the Montana Harvest of the Month program or farm-to-school and farm-to-cafeteria programs to attend the showcase event Friday, April 21, at Gardiner Schools, located at 510 Stone Street. It will begin at 10 a.m. and end at 4 p.m.
“Parents and organizations interested in helping with school taste tests, food service directors looking for realistic recipes and strategies for procuring local foods, educators who want to add farm-to-school activities to curriculum, and producers interested in working with schools and other institutions, this event is for you!” she said.
The cost for the Farm to School Workshop is $15 for an individual, and some scholarships are available. Registration includes lunch and snacks made with local foods.
For more information and to register, click here.
Leading Agricultural Organizations Say Biochar Promise Can Be Realized When Government, Research, NGOs and Industry Come Together
American Farmland Trust, the National Center for Appropriate Technology and the U.S. Biochar Initiative today released Recommendations to Scale Up Sustainable Biochar Research and Commercialization for Agriculture and Conservation, which outlines actions to facilitate the development of a sustainable industry to supply biochar as a crop and grazing land amendment for farmers. Investment in research, production capacity, market mechanisms, outreach, and education will facilitate the broader application of biochar on farms and secure benefits for agriculture along with the delivery of renewable energy as a coproduct.
In March 2022, Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research (FFAR), NCAT and AFT hosted a two-day virtual event on biochar research and commercialization. Discussions reflected broad agreement that building a pyrolysis biochar and bioenergy industry is a promising near-term strategy for carbon removal. Sustainable fit-for-purpose biochar integrated in soil health management systems has potential to address climate change, build productivity and resilience of farms and forests, and create jobs and opportunity across rural America. Chuck Hassebrook, Director of NCAT’s Biochar Policy Project said, “There is great opportunity to build a biochar and biofuel industry that enhances soil health, sequesters carbon, improves farm and forest income, and creates jobs and opportunity across rural America. But federal investment in research and development is needed to unlock that opportunity.”
Building a sustainable pyrolysis biochar bioenergy industry will require a coordinated, multi-faceted strategy. Supportive public policy is needed to prompt investment in production capacity and market development. Convening participants stressed that commercially relevant results are needed during the next five years. Rachel Seman-Varner, Senior Scientist at AFT said, “Current barriers limit the widespread production and use of biochar, and therefore the realization of the full potential climate adaptation and mitigation benefits of the practice. Key barriers can be addressed with a cross-agency, multi-stakeholder approach outlined with these recommendations.”
This white paper presents four core policy recommendations derived from the convening.
Tom Miles, Executive Director of US Biochar Initiative said, “Biochars and biochar-amended products are being used productively in agriculture today. Improved outreach, government incentives, and long-term research are needed to stimulate investment, scale production, and validate long-term agronomic and environmental benefits.”
We cannot wait 50 years to realize the potential of biochar. We present these policy recommendations to meet that challenge.
To view the recorded convening and summary paper along with additional biochar resources, visit the convening webpage on AFT’s Farmland Information Center.
American Farmland Trust is the only national organization that takes a holistic approach to agriculture, focusing on the land itself, the agricultural practices used on that land, and the farmers and ranchers who do the work. AFT launched the conservation agriculture movement and continues to raise public awareness through our No Farms, No Food message. Since our founding in 1980, AFT has helped permanently protect over 7 million acres of agricultural lands, advanced environmentally-sound farming practices on a half million additional acres and supported thousands of farm families. www.farmland.org
CONTACT: Lori Sallet, E: lsallet@farmland.org ● P: (410) 708-5940
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THE NATIONAL CENTER FOR APPROPRIATE TECHNOLOGY has been helping people build resilient communities through local and sustainable solutions that reduce poverty, strengthen self-reliance, and protect natural resources since 1976. Headquartered in Butte, Montana, NCAT has field offices in Arkansas, California, Colorado, Idaho, Kentucky, Mississippi, Montana, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Texas. Learn more and become a friend of NCAT at NCAT.ORG
CONTACT: Emilie Ritter, E: emilier@ncat.org
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US Biochar Initiative promotes the safe, stable, and sustainable production and us of biochar through research, policy, technology, and implementation. Join our network and the growing biochar industry to share findings and best practices that improve soil health and productivity while removing carbon from the atmosphere.
CONTACT: John Webster E: info@biochar-us.org ● P: (801) 870-2465
WATCH: AgriSolar Partnerships Bloom in Minnesota
Minnesota energy companies, solar developers, farmers, and chefs are partnering in innovative ways to grow food, renewable energy, and pollinator habitat all within the same piece of land. The National Center for Appropriate Technology’s (NCAT) AgriSolar Clearinghouse today released its short film “Dive into the Prairie,” which takes viewers on a short tour of Minnesota’s agrivoltaic success stories.
AgriSolar or agrivoltaic partnerships are growing across solar-appropriate farmland in the U.S., providing a new revenue source for farmers, clean energy for surrounding communities, and myriad benefits to crops, livestock, and pollinators.
Chef Mateo Mackbee uses solar-grown foods at his St. Joseph, Minn., restaurant. Everything from salad greens grown under or around solar panels, to the honey that sweetens his salad dressing.
“Agrivoltaics is a big thing for me to see what can be grown, grazed, or raised in and around solar arrays,” said Chef Mackbee. “AgriSolar is the future, for sure.”
Mackbee sources solar-grown honey from Bare Honey, which partners with energy companies and solar developers to place his commercial beekeeping boxes on the same land as the solar panels and pollinator habitat.
“Pollination is a huge part of what commercial beekeeping is,” said Bare Honey founder Dustin Vanasse. “We have our co-located honeybees and those, combined with the native pollinators on these sites, will provide pollination to the farms that are around the site.”
NCAT’s AgriSolar Clearinghouse is connecting businesses, land managers, and researchers with trusted resources to support the growth of co-located solar and sustainable agriculture.
“The partnerships blossoming in Minnesota show a real-world example of how it can work for several industries that share common goals,” said NCAT Energy Director Stacie Peterson, PhD. “Land is finite, and AgriSolar partnerships mean we can maximize our resources for the benefit of communities, the environment, and businesses.”
Missouri Army Veteran Finds New Mission in Sustainable Agriculture
Dustin Cook left the U.S. Army in 2014 after a decade as an active-duty serviceman and later officer. He’s one of more than 350,000 veteran or active-duty service members involved in farming in the United States. He’s also among an elite group of about 900 farmer veterans who have completed the Armed to Farm training program first launched in 2013 through a cooperative agreement with USDA-Rural Development. Armed to Farm is funded in part by ATTRA.
Now, Cook runs the Veteran’s Urban Farm in Columbia, Missouri. It’s part of a nonprofit organization called the Columbia Center for Urban Agriculture. In coordination with the Truman VA Hospital, the Veteran’s Urban Farm provides veterans with therapeutic, vocational, and recreational horticulture training and activities. Cook says veterans learn everything from starting seeds to managing a market stand. Everything the veterans grow at the 1.3-acre urban farm is harvested and donated to fellow vets once per week at the local VA.
Cook describes struggling to transition from active-duty military life to finding his place in a civilian world, noting that sustainable agriculture was one piece that has given him a new mission and passion.
“It’s given me a lot of drive to help other veterans dealing with those same transition struggles,” he says. “I have a real passion for helping other folks – they don’t have to muddle through by themselves – I can say I’ve been where you’re at.”
Cook attended a week-long Armed to Farm training in Fayetteville, Arkansas, in 2021. Once he returned, he says he talks to any farmer-veteran looking for beginning farmer resources, encouraging them to turn to ATTRA and Armed to Farm.
“The thing that really makes Armed to Farm better than the rest is that it’s the complete package. They do a really good job of presenting a lot of information and resources in a short amount of time while also creating interface time with local veteran farmers,” Cook explains. “The fact that all of that is provided free of charge is a huge benefit – there’s a barrier to entry in ag and finance is one of the biggest parts of that, so being able to go for free and learn as a veteran getting into agriculture – that’s just absolutely invaluable.”