Raised by depression-era parents, I have lived through the 1980s farm crisis, and spent 2 years as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Nepal using my first degree (BS agronomy) to help Nepali farmers grow more food. In the 80s and … Continue reading →
US Farm size is difficult to label in a quantitative way. When a measure is easy to derive, it is not very relevant. While moving toward unpacking cellular agriculture in the next few posts, there are formative steps to cover … Continue reading →
Reusing resources delivers value, not simply added costs. As I was reviewing data for my editor on US paper sourcing the Wall Street Journal published an article about Wall Street Banks running from clean energy and climate issues. As new … Continue reading →
Over the last few decades, financing the family farm has shifted. Farm policies and farm management begin with the idea of a farm as the central business unit of a farm household. This is an excellent place to begin. But … Continue reading →
US farms are very diverse but are easy to group into a common label. The 1.9 million farms counted by USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) for 2023, are all authentically US farms. The average number of farms per state … Continue reading →
English is so difficult. The word ‘mean’ here has three different meanings, one of which is to understand. The first occurrence of ‘mean’ infers an average. The second ‘mean’ occurrence implies or conveys understanding. The third ‘mean’ is a value … Continue reading →
In the United States, one president is preparing to leave, while the next one is preparing to take over. With each presidential transition, there are plans to dismantle policies created during one administration so life will return to better days. … Continue reading →
Land use change has gotten complicated. Tracking changes in climate have added more than simply physical changes in land use. The first step in understanding the more sophisticated land use change implications is to understand what land is changing. The … Continue reading →
Moving averages are the most basic tool, taught in undergraduate courses as an introduction to forecasting. Prior to the pandemic, commodity futures charts were the go-to illustration of the benefits of moving averages for undergraduate students. Moving averages smooth out the … Continue reading →
The more things change, it seems the more they stay the same. This Biomass Rules chart with data from 2006, appeared in Chapter 19: Williams, James L. and Mark Jenner. Petroleum Dependence, Biofuels – Economies Of Scope And Scale; US … Continue reading →
