Think about this for a moment: Approximately half of Minnesota’s land area is used for agriculture.
A large chunk of the state’s farmland — about 35 percent — is rented from owners who do not farm. Within this statistic is a familiar story: An older generation of farmers retires without heirs who want to take over.
Instead, their children or grandchildren scatter toward other careers or opportunities and eventually, they inherit the farmland. This presents a series of difficult choices. Decisions over who controls land and how it’s used are about much more than money or paperwork. They also touch on family, legacy and the ways people relate to the environment.
Carol Bouska lives in Minneapolis and owns farmland in northeastern Iowa with her three sisters. Meg Nielsen has farmland in southern Minnesota and lives in Wisconsin.
Both are members of a landowner group called Climate Land Leaders that works to store carbon and reduce emissions. MPR News Host Cathy Wurzer talked with them and William Lazarus, an extension economist and professor at the University of Minnesota, about farmland transitions and the roles of heirs and renters in Minnesota farm country.
Bouska’s family has deep farm roots. Her dad was born on the family farm and lived there his whole life. When her parents died, she and her siblings had to act fast to decide what to do.
Climate change is important to Bouska, and that has influenced her farming. Now, the land is split: half corn and soybeans, half grazing for animals. They hope to plant trees around the 50 acres.
Nielsen grew up on a farm. When her parents died, she and her sister weren’t sure what to do. They split the land and now she and her husband are working on changes.
They planted 4,500 trees and shrubs, put in prairie strips around the perimeter of the land, planted three pollinator fields and restored a wetland area. These changes brought back five different species of waterfowl.
Landlords vary in terms of how much they care about the land, said Lazarus. A survey by the USDA Economic Research Service recently looked at various issues related to absent landlords. It found that rented land is less likely to utilize cover cropping, which aids in conservation efforts.
Lazarus says renters vary, too, between beginning farmers and more established farmers who are looking for more land. There is a lot of pressure from the economy to farm more acres, he said, but land has gone up in price and is too expensive for many to buy.
Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.
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