Priorities & Tactics

Priorities

Farm Prosperity
Production practices on farms focus on maximizing production efficiencies, generating primarily undifferentiated low-value commodity products. The intensive use of tillage and chemical inputs increases production predictability and decreases management requirements. Profit margins are slim, with little flexibility or resiliency. The result is a fragile, volatile system that can easily be disrupted by adverse weather, changes in policy, or international trade conflicts.

Since 2013, commodity grain returns have been low, driven by the flattening of corn ethanol consumption. Recent trade disputes and COVID-19 impacts have further depressed markets. During the period of 2018 through 2020, government payments have constituted 10-15% of farm revenue. In the absence of additional federal aid in 2021, corn and soybean returns are projected to be negative. The current macro economic approach is not working for farms today.

Weather Resiliency
Shifting weather patterns in Michigan impact field operations and yield stability, at the same time impacting broader surface and ground water hydrology. Temperatures, particularly nighttime temperatures, have been rising steadily over the last few decades.  More economically significant are precipitation patterns. The frequency and intensity of precipitation is increasing and over the past decade, the state has experienced the highest frequency of 2-inch rain events in the historical record. At the same time, seasonal droughts are becoming more common and rainfall patterns are generally more erratic.

The flashiness of precipitation patterns makes infiltration and water holding capacity all that more important. Keeping water in the field and available to crops later helps withstand seasonal droughts, while at the same time reducing the downstream impacts of flooding. With heavy precipitation as a primary diver of nutrient transport from farm fields, controlling how water leaves has nutrient loss implications as well. Shifts in agricultural management practices and increasing diversity of crop rotations are keys in improving the resiliency of Michigan farms from weather extremes.

Water Quality
Great Lakes water quality continues to see significant impairment, in no small part to due to nutrient losses from agriculture. Since coming to the forefront in 2014 with the mycrocystin contamination of Toledo’s drinking water supply, Lake Erie water quality has been a touchstone issue for agriculture.  Important to note, however, are water quality impairments in other bodies such as Saginaw Bay. Despite the attention placed on this issue and efforts to address nutrient losses with fertilizer management, high phosphorus loading continues and severe algal blooms persist. The practices known to reduce P losses from agricultural fields- cover crops, true no-till, reductions in fertilizer and manure rates, avoiding nutrient applications ahead of forecasted storm events- have not seen wide-spread adoption. Ohio has continued to implement initiatives such as H2Ohio that may offer some improvements, but Michigan political leaders have resisted calls to place a similar priority in addressing these issues. Public expectations of Michigan’s natural resources free from degradation stemming from agricultural nutrient losses are not unreasonable. In the absence of any clear improvement in water quality, real and meaningful reforms of agricultural practices are necessary.

Rural Economies
Farms are the economic engines of small towns and rural landscapes. Rural communities across Michigan are struggling due to many factors, but current consolidation trends in agri-business have led to the export of rural wealth to wall street. Building a stronger farm economy includes a focus on overall rural economies, and specifically incorporating local investment and ownership in the food system.

Tactics

Soil Health
Balancing soil biological capacity along with chemical and physical properties is the single most important management shift to address water management, crop nutrition, and farm profitability. Soils with high biological activity have increased soil water holding capacity and precipitation infiltration potential- characteristics that mitigate the impacts of high intensity rainfall and seasonal droughts. Dependency on chemical inputs and tillage to modify the soil environment can be reduce, directly translating into high profitability. While soil health can easily be touted as a panacea for what ails agriculture today, restoring the natural functionality of soils.

Diverse Rotations
Expanding the diversity of production systems is a crucial aspect of increasing flexibility and resiliency. Viable markets for alternative must exist, however, for producers to expand their crop rotations. As weather and climate patterns become more variable, shifting crops in order to respond to seasonal conditions makes growers more nimble and dynamic. Overwintering crops, such as wheat and other small grains, contribute to soil health and further contribute to resiliency over the long-term. Building stronger local food systems promises to be a growing priority and Michigan’s inherent crop diversity potential can be leveraged to meet these needs.

Grower Networks
The innovators of agricultural practice today are farmers, supplanting industry and academia that heralded the previous waves of agricultural advancements. Innovative producers are in need of technical assistance and information exchange as they create these new systems. Social networks play an important role in the spread of new behaviors, particularly in expanding adoption of new practices beyond the innovator and early adopter segments. Networks are essential in providing necessary social support for farmers to persevere in changing the operational philosophy of multigenerational family farms.

Equitable Policy
Identification and development of policy and economic opportunities at the state level to drive and incentivize long-term adoption of more sustainable agricultural systems is critical. A growing number of state and national policy leaders question the efficacy of current conservation programs for agriculture and their ability to deliver adequate and intended environmental improvements. Partners are needed who understand the dynamics of current agricultural production systems and specific challenges posed by extreme weather and climate change, while embracing an appreciation of the science around potential solutions and the complexities of the political system.