Advancing Precision Nutrient and Soil Health Management with Retailer Cooperatives

 While extreme weather events threaten farm viability and water quality concerns from
soil erosion and eutrophication abound, agricultural producers and their trusted advisors are
tasked with improving not only farm profitability but also environmental stewardship. Farm management must adapt to become smarter, more resilient, more environmentally responsible, and more profitable. To get there, we need to foster collaboration among conservation experts, technology leaders, scientists, producers, and agricultural advisors; break down adoption barriers to innovative practices; and collect, analyze and communicate the results of on-farm trials to broad audiences. The goals of the “Advancing Precision Nutrient and Soil Health Management with Retailer Cooperatives” project are:
1. Scale Conservation Adoption: We will significantly expand and accelerate the adoption
of precision nutrient management and soil health supporting practices on cultivated
cropland acres in the primary wheat and corn production regions in the Midwest.
2. Share the Value of Precision Conservation: We will develop and broadly share
agronomic, environmental, and economic insights on the value proposition for producers
that adopt precision nutrient management practices.
3. Show the “Return on Investment” of Innovation Trials: We will demonstrate the
“bang for the buck” value of helping producers adopt and learn to management advanced
conservation systems on a single field so that they can, in turn, scale those systems across
their entire operation without additional financial assistance.
4. Leverage Private-Sector Capabilities: We will demonstrate the positive impact of
integrating agricultural retailer cooperatives with their agronomic expertise and advanced
crop management technology into the voluntary, private lands conservation partnership.