
We Need Regenerative Agriculture, But How Can Farmers Fund the Transition?
“It’s always us asking the question of what do we want to do? And then going out and trying desperately to find some money to offset the capital that it takes to run a farm.”
May 28, 2024 | Source: Modern Farmer | by Lindsey Beatrice
“Of 400 farms in our county, only five are organic,” says Matt Fitzgerald of Fitzgerald Organics in Hutchinson, Minnesota. His 2,500-acre family farm is patchwork across 40 miles of land the family owns and leases, and grows organic corn, soy, wheat and specialty crops such as beans and peas.
Getting funding to transition to regenerative organic practices can be a challenge for farms of all sizes, but it’s a necessity if we want to have abundant harvests for generations to come.
Fitzgerald says that while the farm mainly works with a community bank, the lenders don’t understand its operations to accurately assess risk of organic and regenerative farming operations. Plus, Fitzgerald explains that the typical bank is looking to lend only a 12- to 18-month credit. This can put regenerative farmers in a bind as it takes multiple years to transition land or reach profitability with new processes.
There is never a silver bullet solution to any environmental issue. Regenerative agriculture in practice looks different depending on the unique situation of the farm, and so does the funding for it.