Sowing & Growing: A Year in Review
Working toward RIPE’s mission through
boots in the dirt & bipartisanship
Its hard to believe that in just a few short weeks, we will close the chapter that is 2024. This year flew by for those of us on the RIPE Team, due in part to all of the programs and projects we have been working on keeping us busy. This year wasn’t without challenges, but all in all it’s been a transformative time for RIPE. We were on the ground in 11 states, meeting with producers, conservation groups, policymakers, and trade associations alike. We breathed new life into some of our work streams, and built entirely new ones as well. And we are just getting started.
Before we can hit the ground running in 2025, it is important to pause and glance at the rear view mirror and enjoy a moment of reflection. Read on to learn more about what we accomplished this year and how we plan to keep it going.
RIPE’s headquarters may be in Washington, DC, but our staff and coalition members live all over the United States. We had our Boots in the Dirt across 11 states, meeting with a variety of stakeholders from across the agriculture industry. This includes trips to KS, TX, AZ, DC, WI, PA, MS, NE, ND, SD and AR.
The year started quickly with a trip to Wichita, KS in January for the 28th Annual No-Till on the Plains Winter Conference. The conference has become a central fixture for farmers and ranchers transitioning towards regenerative farming systems and is attended by producers within the Great Plain States and beyond. RIPE met with leaders from the soil health community, participated in conference meetings, and established a number of new relationships.
In February, RIPE traveled to Houston, TX for the 2024 Commodity Classic, the largest annual convening of farmers in the United States. This event included the annual meeting for RIPE Steering Committee Member National Sorghum Producers, as well as the National Corn Growers Association and the American Soybean Association. Staying on the pulse of challenges faced by our country’s ag producers, along with the opportunities available to them, is vital to RIPE’s mission. Attending events like the Commodity Classic is crucial to ensure we understand the unique needs of Rural America and how to best address these needs.
In March, RIPE headed to Phoenix, AZ for the 2024 National Farmers Union Convention. Here, we had the chance to meet with members of the Minnesota Farmers Union and the North Dakota Farmers Union, two treasured members of our Steering Committee. At this meeting, we also began building relationships with other state Farmers Unions. Our work is meant to benefit all farmers, regardless of their commodities or their geographic location. Establishing new relationships and maintaining existing ones, as we did in Phoenix, helps RIPE ensure our mission is as timely, relevant, and impactful as possible to the American producer, no matter where they are from, what they look like, or how long they have been farming.
In April, RIPE was on the ground in Washington, DC. The action-packed week started with a meeting with Rod Snyder, Senior Advisor for Agriculture at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and former President of Field to Market. RIPE discussed the interests of its producer-led coalition to receive fair compensation for voluntary conservation efforts. These conservation efforts are justified and supported by the stacked ecosystem service values that are provided to the public. This conversation between RIPE and Snyder included RIPE’s research on stacked environmental benefits, which Snyder felt is a significant piece of work that could further bolster the EPA’s interest in addressing water quality issues associated with agriculture and nonpoint source pollution. Additionally in the policy space, RIPE met with the Democrat and Republican House Ag Committee Staff and received a briefing on the status of the Farm Bill. Both parties also detailed notable progress made on the Conservation Title which include several key RIPE Coalition priorities. Get the full scoop on our trip to America’s capital city in our blog Boots in the Dirt: RIPE On the Ground in DC.
In June, RIPE Executive Director Trey Cooke joined Field to Market in Wisconsin for a general assembly session, as well as a farm tour of Frost Farms in Waterford, WI. RIPE is a member of Field to Market: The Alliance for Sustainable Agriculture. According to Field to Market, the organization brings together a diverse group of grower organizations, agribusinesses, food, beverage, apparel, restaurant and retail companies, conservation groups, universities, and public sector partners to define, measure and advance the sustainability of food, feed, fiber and fuel production in the United States. More specifically, and relevant to RIPE’s mission, Field to Market and its members are committed to supporting resilient ecosystems and farmer economic vitality as fundamental components of agricultural sustainability. Read all about it in our blog Boots in the Dirt: RIPE On the Ground in WI.
Later that month, Cooke and Communications Manager Melissa Willhouse traveled to Pennsylvania to meet with RIPE President Bill Beam, tour Beam Farms, and visit with additional friends of RIPE (old and new) in the region. This included a visit with PennAg, a tour of Stroud Water Research Center, a chat with the Conservation Commission at the PA Department of Agriculture, Hatfield Meats, and even got a chance to connect with House Agriculture Committee Chairman G. T. Thompson in Lancaster County.
While we were grateful to visit with several groups and individuals on this trip, one especially memorable aspect was our visit to Beam Farms. After all, Beam Farms is owned and operated by RIPE President Bill Beam, and utilizes various sustainability practices within their operations. Beam Farms is a 4,000 acre operation nestled in Elverson, PA of Chester County. Lancaster and Chester Counties are part of the larger Chesapeake Bay Watershed, which is why conservation in agricultural production in this region is vital for the environment as well. Beam Farms practices sustainability in agriculture using a variety of methods, particularly no-till and reduced-till. It utilizes precision agriculture to reduce waste, maximize efficiency and record data to understand environmental benefits and identify opportunities for improvement. Learn more about Beam Farms and our trip to Pennsylvania in our blog Boots in the Dirt: RIPE On the Ground in PA.
At the end of June, Cooke was on the road again, this time in Greenville, MS to attend one of the National Black Growers Council’s 2024 Model Farm Field Days. The National Black Growers Council, also a trusted member of RIPE’s Steering Committee, was organized to represent the unique needs of full-time Black farmers. As stated on their website, “we have formed partnerships with each other, with majority farmers, and with corporations, because together, we all contribute to the global food supply.” These Field Days, a recurring event hosted by NBGC during the summer, focus on ways to improve efficiency, productivity, and sustainability, all the while highlighting a local farm. Special shout out to Patrick Smith, the second-generation farmer who hosted the Field Day at Smith Farms and former RIPE Board Member, P. J. Haynie, III who currently serves as the Chairman of the National Black Growers Council.
In July, we joined our newest Steering Committee member, No-till on the Plains, for their Dakotas Soil Health Bus Tour, of which RIPE was a co-sponsor. We attended their Winter Conference in Wichita, KS earlier in the year, before they formally joined the RIPE Coalition. The summer trip, which began and ended in Nebraska, included visits to different farms and ranches across the Dakotas and plenty of conservation conversations along the way. Agriculture is the dominant land use in the American Midwestern Plains, with more than 80% of the region dedicated to cropland, pastureland, and rangeland (Shafer et al. 2014). Life in the Great Plains has always been stacked against the backdrop of a challenging climate, and increasing frequency and intensity of extreme weather events is starting to have a greater impact on agriculture and communities within the region (read more from USDA). These factors made the Great Plains an ideal locale for such a trip, which allowed those of us in attendance from RIPE to meet with producers from the region and beyond. Learn more detail in our blog Boots in the Dirt: RIPE On the Ground for No-till on the Plains Bus Tour.
Rounding out our busy summer was a trip to Little Rock, AR in August, to attend the Alliance to Advance Climate-Smart Agriculture Summit. This trip was especially important to RIPE for two reasons:
RIPE was the original author of the project proposal currently being carried out by the Alliance. We are thrilled to see the progress being made and happy to see producers beginning to see payments. This is the core of RIPE’s work, and we are grateful to have been involved from the beginning.
We were able to award RIPE past president Eunie Biel with a plaque commemorating her service to RIPE in the presence of some Steering Committee representatives
While in AR, we got to meet up with members of our Steering Committee, IDEA Committee and Board of Directors. We also had the great opportunity to visit Isbell Farms, learn about their sustainable rice production systems, and see renewable energy on farmland in action. The trip to Isbell Farms also coincided with their first day of harvest, providing the opportunity for RIPE friends from North Dakota and Minnesota to get some quality tractor time with Mark Isbell. Read all about it in our blog Boots in the Dirt: Climate-Smart Agriculture in America’s Rice Capital.
Which brings us to December 2024. In just a few weeks, members of our Board of Directors and Steering Committee representatives will join us in Washington, DC for our LeadershipMeeting. As the year begins to wind down, we are really revving things up to establish the foundation for the work we do in 2025 and beyond. Be sure you are subscribed to our newsletter and following us on social media for updates and highlights from our Annual Meeting.
Want to see RIPE in your neck of the woods next year? Interested in getting involved in RIPE’s mission, and ensuring producers are adequately compensated for their voluntary conservation efforts? Contact us to get started.
