Summer 2022
Summer is a busy time at Farm Foundation, with many projects coming to fruition and many more getting ready to launch. It's also a time of travel to events that allow us to connect in person with food and ag stakeholders across the country.
The Latest on Our Work

Farm Foundation organizes project work on four strategic priorities: conservation and sustainability, digital agriculture, farmer health, and market development and access.
On August 23 and 24, the Fixing the Soil Health Tech Stack: Gathering for Action conference and hackathon aim to solve the gaps that exist in the harmonization of soil-centric data collection and analysis. Those gaps need to be overcome to have a thriving marketplace to reward farmers and ranchers for taking actions and delivering outcomes that result in healthier soils and carbon sequestration. Learn more and register today.
The latest Farm Foundation Issue Report, The U.S. Voluntary Agricultural Carbon Market: Where to From Here?, focuses on agricultural carbon markets in the United States. Written by Dr. Alejandro Plastina, the outgoing Farm Foundation Agricultural Economics Fellow, the report discusses multiple voluntary agricultural carbon programs and the contractual implications for participating farmers, barriers to the development of a voluntary market for agricultural carbon credits, and presents a simplified analysis of four possible scenarios for voluntary agricultural carbon markets. Read the report.
CALL FOR NOMINATIONS: 2023 AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS FELLOW Open to early-to-mid career faculty focused on sustainable food systems. This is a yearlong program with the USDA Office of the Chief Economist. Contact Martha King, vice president of programs and projects, for more information or to apply/make a nomination. Nomination deadline is September 23.
A nine-episode podcast, Farm Family Wellness, highlighted different facets of wellness and pointed listeners to resources available to Iowa and Illinois farm families at no cost through the Farm Family Wellness Alliance, a collaboration between Farm Foundation, Iowa State University Extension and Outreach, and Personal Assistance Services. The episodes were broadcast on radio stations in Iowa as part of Brownfield's Managing for Profit program.
If your organization is interested in partnering with us on these or other initiatives in these important areas affecting agriculture, please contact us to start the conversation.
Coming Soon!
Three Farm Foundation Issue Reports are currently in production and will be published soon:
  • Farm to Fork: European Agriculture in Transition? 
  • The Future of Food and Agricultural Trade with China  
  • Could Climate Change Produce a Revolutionary 2023 Farm Bill? 

Join the “Friends of Farm Foundation” to get first-look access to our issue reports, among other benefits!
Stay Informed With Farm Foundation Forums
September 27
Antimicrobial Stewardship in Agriculture:
How Far Have We Come and What’s Next?
Register today for the September 27 Farm Foundation Forum, Antimicrobial Stewardship in Agriculture: How Far Have We Come and What’s Next? This Forum will examine upcoming U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulation changes affecting antibiotic use in livestock production. Private companies and producers are carefully considering when and how antibiotics are used in order to comply with these new restrictions to satisfy consumers’ demand for products raised with little or no antibiotics. The conversation will also be broadened beyond livestock and antibiotics to consider proper stewardship of antifungals in crop production. 
Access the Forum Archive
Customer Demand for Environmental Reporting: A Look at Environmental Impact Measurement discussed the growing consumer demand for environmental impact reporting. Topics covered what customers are looking for, what actions companies are taking, and how the measurements are being validated.

Farm, Food, and the Policies and Practices Behind America’s Dietary Health examined the links between farm policies and the nation’s dietary health. The Forum featured authors Robert Paarlberg, Michael Jacobson, and Eve Turow-Paul as they took a look at the intersections between fresh food availability, food manufacturing, and food policy. 
Farm Foundation Forums, as well as a wide collection of interviews and presentation excerpts offering invaluable industry insights, are available on our YouTube channel.
Next Generation Program News
Farm Foundation program participants were front and center at the Agricultural & Applied Economics Association (AAEA) meeting in Anaheim. The 2022 Agricultural Scholars presented their research during the meeting, participated in the extension tour, and enjoyed connecting with other ag econ leaders. In addition, Ag Scholars Megan Hughes and Roberto Koeneke served as the outgoing and incoming chairs of the AAEA Graduate Student Section.
Agricultural Scholars at AAEA
Top row: Roberto Koeneke (University of Florida) presents his poster; Naila McCraney (Florida A&M) catches up with Round Table Fellow Paul Patterson; Carson Honse (Lincoln University) and Kameron Shelby (Prairie View A&M) discussing a poster.
Middle row: Ashling Murphy (Kansas State) presenting; Alicia Young (Oklahoma State) presenting; Megan Hughes (Purdue) moderating a packed house session on navigating the job market
Bottom row: Micah Cameron-Harp (Kansas State) presenting; Ag Scholars visit the Second Harvest Food Bank in Orange County during the AAEA Extension Section Tour; Touring fields at Tanaka Farms.
Next Generation Programs Call for Nominations
Two Next Generation programs are currently accepting nominations for the upcoming program cycle. Please consider sharing this opportunity with your networks.

JANUARY 2023 AGRICULTURAL SCHOLARS Open to graduate students in applied/ag economics. This is a yearlong program with ERS. Nomination deadline is November 1.

JANUARY 2023 CULTIVATORS Open to undergrad and graduate students in any discipline. Cultivators will attend the January 2023 Round Table in Savannah. Proposed student research should focus on international trade and supply chain, including port issues. Nominations due by November 8.
For more information on the Cultivators and Ag Scholars program, contact Jenna Wicks, program manager.
Next Generation Participant Updates
Ag Scholar Naila McCraney graduated from Florida A&M in May and will be joining the Natural Resources Conservation Service field office in Live Oak, Florida, as a soil conservationist.

Ag Scholar Haden Comstock graduated in May from Purdue and is currently the associate director of market intelligence at the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association in Denver, Colorado.

In total, Farm Foundation Next Generation programs have 152 alumni across the globe. To reconnect with these alumni and build a lasting relationship, Farm Foundation has started the Next Generation Alumni Network. Contact us to discuss partnership opportunities to further scale our Next Generation programs to provide even greater support and more opportunities to our outstanding program participants.
Rep Farm Foundation and Support Next Gen Programming
Were you admiring the buttery soft green Farm Foundation crew neck t-shirts worn by the Ag Scholars at AAEA? No need to be jealous. You can order one (or ten) for yourself! Proceeds from the t-shirt fundraiser will go to support Farm Foundation Next Generation programs. Be sure to place your orders by Friday, September 9.
Farm Foundation Staff News
In mid-May, Farm Foundation's Shari Rogge-Fidler, president and CEO, attended an in-person meeting of the USDA's Equity Commission. She and Tim Brennan, vice president of external relations, met with Representative Brad Schneider’s staff to talk about our new Innovation and Education Campus that will be built in his district. Later in the month, she presented at the Kansas City Fed’s 2022 Agricultural Symposium, on a panel examining the outlook for farm labor in the years ahead. Shari also moderated the CAPI Dialogue on Agriculture and Food Security: Global Challenges and Local Solutions, which was co-presented by Farm Foundation and the Canadian Agri-Food Policy Institute.

Martha King, vice president of programs and projects, spoke at The Chicago Farmers' Annual Meeting in May. The meeting's theme was "Managing Data From Farm to Fork." She also spoke at the Great Lakes Economic Forum in June, on the topic of supply chain pressures and digitization.
In addition to a whirlwind of activity behind the scenes getting our new centennial farm property up and running (sneak peek below), Todd Price, vice president, Innovation and Education Campus, presented to the Illinois Agricultural Leadership Foundation in June to let them know more about our work.
Take a Tour of the Innovation and Education Campus
Our barn at the Innovation and Education Campus has a fresh coat of paint! Click on the photo below to follow a link to a short video showcasing the property. All the IEC milestones, big and small, get us one step closer to launching new programming. If you are interested in learning more or developing a gift to support this initiative, please contact Tim Brennan, vice president of external relations.
Upcoming Events and Key Dates
August 23-24, 2022: Fixing the Soil Health Tech Stack (Online Event)
September 21-22, 2022: Land-Based Carbon Sinks Modeler Forum in Atlanta
September 23, 2022: 2023 Agricultural Economics Fellow Nomination Deadline
September 27, 2022: Farm Foundation Forum on Antimicrobial Stewardship
November 1, 2022: 2023 Agricultural Scholars Nomination Deadline
November 8, 2022: January 2023 Cultivators Nomination Deadline
January 11-13, 2023: Farm Foundation Round Table in Savannah
Farm Foundation is an accelerator of practical solutions for agriculture. Our mission is to build trust and understanding at the intersections of agriculture and society. Our vision is to build a future for farmers, our communities and our world.
Farm Foundation