Agricultural News
U.S. Soybean Farmers Committed to Protecting the Environment
Tue, 18 Mar 2014 15:00:37 CDT
March 25 is National Agriculture Day, a day to celebrate American farmers for their commitment to the land they farm and the people who use the food, feed, fuel and fiber they produce. In recent years, U.S. soybean farmers have grown more efficient in growing their crops, increasing yields while decreasing the size of their environmental footprint.
"U.S. soybean growers think about a lot more than short-term economic gain when planting a crop," says Nancy Kavazanjian, a checkoff farmer-leader from Beaver Dam, Wis. "Like most American farmers, we care a great deal about our land. We're in it for the long term. So many of us have inherited our land and we also want to pass it down to our children. Therefore, everything we do is centered on making the land better."
More than 95 percent of U.S. soybean farmers participate in farm programs administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. And through the use of sustainable-farming practices, U.S. soybean farmers have decreased energy use and greenhouse-gas emissions by more than 45 percent since 1980, and increased irrigation efficiency by more than 40 percent since 1980.
Thanks in part to American farmers, the United States enjoys the most abundant, affordable and safe food supply in the world. And many countries beyond U.S. borders enjoy the bounty of U.S. soybean farmers' annual crop, as well. Both domestically and internationally, the food industry uses the majority of U.S. soybean oil to bake and fry food. And animal agriculture accounts for 97 percent of U.S. soybean meal consumption, using it in feed for the chickens, swine, fish and other animals that contribute to our food supply.
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