What is Regenerative Agriculture?
Regenerative Agriculture is a bunch of different processes that when done together, have the ability to recapture carbon from the atmosphere and put it back into the soil. This carbon that was destined to cause climate problems as a greenhouse gas is now repurposed via photosynthesis to make a richer soil.
Regenerative Agriculture as a philosophy asks us to consider all aspects of agriculture as if they were connected through a web – a complete and connected network.
The main goal is to create richer, living soil that will produce better flavored and nutrient-dense foods. The processes that make up Regenerative Agriculture include:
- Planting cover crops – this includes planting crops in soil that would normally be bare after another crop is grown and harvested. This helps by keeping living roots in the soil, which reduces soil erosion, increases water retention, and improves overall soil health.
- Integrating livestock – moving livestock between pastures on a regular basis helps improve soil health and allows grass time to regrow
- Minimizing chemicals – helps build soil health
- Utilizing no-till systems – leaves soil intact when planting
- Rotating crops – encourages more biodiversity, improves and optimizes soil health
- Increasing biodiversity – improves the health of plant, bird, and insect populations
Example Regenerative Agriculture Ingredients:
- Grains: farro, sorghum
- Produce: jicama, bok choy
- Legumes: lentils
- Seeds/Nuts: flax, chia
- Leafy Greens: matcha, beet greens
How can we support regenerative agriculture at home?
- Support organizations that are working on building better soil
- Connect with local farmers at farmer’s markets and talk to them about their soil practices
- Consider joining a local Community Support Agriculture (CSA) farm
- Compost at home
- Start your own garden