Essay
The bill that I have written is dealing with the allocation of tillable farm land owned by the State of Minnesota that is intended for agricultural usage. This bill would allow historically underserved groups to acquire farmland more easily by offering them priority over other producers. Along with putting limitations on who could acquire the land, it would require them to use Best Management Practices (BMP’s).
One of the major upsides to this bill is that it allows Historically Underserved (HU) groups to become more represented in the agricultural community. The HU groups that are represented include limited resource farmers or ranchers, defined by the USDA as “someone who has a total household income at or below the national poverty level”. A beginning farmer or rancher which according to the USDA is “someone who has operated a farm or ranch for not more that 10 Consecutive years”. A veteran farmer or rancher which according to the USDA is “someone who has served in the United States Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, or Coast Guard”. The final group would be a socially disadvantaged farmer or rancher which according to the USDA is someone who falls into one of the following categories: “Women, African-Americans, Alaskan Natives, American Indian, Hispanics, Asians, Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders ”. These HU groups are currently extremely underrepresented in the agricultural community. This bill would allow them to have primary access to state owned lands for rent and allow them to have a more easily accessible way to begin and grow their farming operation.
In addition, this bill would also require the renter to follow BMP’s that are set by the University of Minnesota Extension Services. These practices are specific to the region of the state they are located in. Some examples of recommended practices would be utilizing the appropriate amount of nutrients for the growing crops as well as using practices like no-till or reduced tillage. Planting cover crops and implementing the 4 R’s (right source, right rate, right time, right place) are other ways conservation agriculture is implemented. With these practices being required to rent the land, it would lower the potential of soil erosion and help reduce the potential of nitrate leaching and phosphorus run-off from these areas.
It would prevent land that could be used to help further agricultural growth from being enrolled into conservation programs. Well maintaining the quality of the land by adhering to the university of minnesota best management practices. It would allow for the food production rates to be stable because the land would be unable to leave circulation suddenly. As well as increasing the ability for new people to enter into the agricultural community. It allows the next generation a chance to get established without the commotion from the open market making acquisition of the rental property easier for the new farmer.
There is one downside seen with this bill. It would potentially hinder the growth of large scale production agriculture. It would require the large-scale operations to go through more effort in order to both get and keep the land for extended periods of time. There is also the risk involved for them of someone coming in and being able to acquire the land from them where there contracts would only be yearly.
Overall this bill would allow the agricultural industry to grow. It would allow for new people to enter. As well as maintaining high standards for their management practices. It would allow all of the agricultural state land to reach its full potential and be used in the most profitable way possible with very few downsides.
Sources
“Historically Underserved Farmers and Ranchers.” Natural Resources Conservation Service, www.nrcs.usda.gov/getting-assistance/underserved-farmers-ranchers.
“The Agricultural Best Management Practices Handbook for Minnesota | Department of Bioproducts and Biosystems Engineering.” Umn.edu, 2017, bbe.umn.edu/extension-outreach/agricultural-handbook. Accessed 27 Oct. 2024.
“Minnesota State Land Portfolio.” Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, www.dnr.state.mn.us/slam/land-portfolio.html.
NRDC. “Industrial Agriculture 101.” NRDC, 31 Jan. 2020, www.nrdc.org/stories/industrial-agriculture-101.
