Soil supports 95% of all global food production. By 2050 the soils will have to feed an estimated 9.8 Billion people.

Transcript of the Soil Health Institute’s “Theory of Change” Video:

Soil supports 95% of all global food production. In 2050, our soils will have to feed an estimated 9.8 billion people. That’s two billion more than our current world population. Our soils will also help us provide cotton and other natural fabrics to clothe the world and grow our bioenergy crops, food fiber fuel –  soils are vital.  They filter water. They are one of our most cost-effective reservoirs for sequestering carbon. They are our foundation for biodiversity. A healthy soil is vibrantly alive, teaming with 10,000 pounds of biological life in every acre.

Yet, in the last 150 years, we’ve lost half of the basic building block that makes soil productive. The societal and environmental costs, soil loss and degradation in the United States alone are now estimated to be as high as eighty-five billion dollars. Every single year an abundance of research shows that practices which improve soil health also reduce nutrient loss to our waterways, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, increase carbon sequestration, increase biodiversity, and provide many other benefits. But it’s going to be our land managers, primarily our farmers and ranchers, that will achieve those benefits for the rest of us. 

That is why the Soil Health Institute employs a comprehensive strategy to increase adoption of soil health systems. The first step is to understand what producers need when deciding whether to adopt new management practices. Producers tell us one of the first pieces of information they need is the business case. Will the recommended system be profitable? Will it increase or reduce my economic risk? Can the environmental benefits be credited back to my farm? 

Producers also say they need to know how to measure the health of their soil so they can determine its current status and monitor their progress at improving soil health. Producers need locally relevant information to help them develop and implement the soil health management plan that works for them and their farm.  At the heart of that training is a requirement that it is based on sound science.

Research and development are fundamental for reducing business risk and making new management decisions with confidence. Once these soil health systems are adopted, it is critical that we assess their impact on productivity. Because this supports and refines the business case and provides the evidence-based information required for making sound policy assessing impact. It  also provides the data needed for educating consumers on the environmental benefits and perhaps even human health benefits of growing our food fiber and fuel using soil health systems.

Imagine the progress we can make at scale towards improving water quality, feeding the hungry, fighting climate change, providing pollinator habitat when consumers have learned about these benefits and demand that their food be grown using practices that enhance soil health.

This is the comprehensive strategy that the Soil Health Institute uses and offers to effect positive change at scale for farmers, the environment,  and, ultimately for society. The task at hand is more than any one organization can achieve alone. Many partners are already working together to enhance soil health, but so much more is needed. All are invited to participate and make soil health the cornerstone for managing our natural resources around the world. 

We and all future generations have a critical stake in the outcome. We invite you to become involved today in one of the boldest movements in agricultural and environmental history. Join us.

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