Sustainability: You may not know much about it, but your customers do
What’s sustainability? Nearly 40 percent of farmers participating in a recent soy-checkoff survey say they’re unfamiliar with the term. That concerns United Soybean Board (USB) farmer-leader Mike Thede because he says many of U.S. soy’s customers consider sustainability very important. “Our customers are starting to ask how we are producing our products and if we’re doing it in a sustainable manner,” says Thede, who farms in Palmer, Neb. “As we go forward, it will affect our bottom line if we aren’t doing ...
Walmart Says Sustainability Makes It More Profitable – and Can Make Farmers More Profitable, Too
As senior director of business strategy and sustainability for Walmart, Fred Bedore has become a focal point of the sustainability discussion. Bedore has been busy explaining his company’s approach to just about anyone who asks. In a recent interview with Beyond ...
Read MoreSustainability as a Selling Point
The soy checkoff stays on top of issues and trends that affect U.S. soy customers’ demands. One issue on the minds of many soy buyers right now is sustainability. For example, food companies, which collectively represent the biggest user of U.S. ...
Read MoreCheckoff Takes Initiative on Sustainability
Nebraska soybean farmer Mike Thede thinks back to three years ago and says he already knew the buzz around sustainability would come to U.S. soybean farms. So, Thede and his fellow volunteer farmer-leaders on the United Soybean Board (USB) created ...
Read MoreSustainable Solutions
Since the United Soybean Board created its Sustainability Initiative three years ago, few issues have been as important as sustainability. And its importance will likely continue. Demands for sustainably sourced ingredients seem to come from every customer of U.S. soy. ...
Read MoreSustainability: Why Should You Care?
U.S. soybean farmers hear a lot about “sustainability,” but what does it really mean, and why should they care? Why should the United States care? Anyone who wants some answers to those questions and more is encouraged to attend a first-ever ...
Read MoreNew Lessons in Farming Efficiency
Since his two sons, Jeremy and Shane, came back to the farm full time, Nebraska soybean farmer Greg Greving has undoubtedly taught them a thing or two. But they’ve also impressed at least one lesson upon him when it comes ...
Read MoreGetting a Kick Out of Cover Crops
It takes a lot to please soybean farmer Tim Smith, but the results of planting cover crops, of all things, did exactly that. Smith, a soybean and corn farmer from Eagle Grove, Iowa, started a program last year to plant cereal ...
Read MoreTilling Times Have Changed
John Traub’s tillage practices have changed drastically since he plowed fields until they were black for his grandfather. “He didn’t want to see any residue on top after I was done,” says the soybean and corn farmer from Fairbury, Ill. Traub recently ...
Read MoreShowing U.S. Soy’s Sustainability One Farmer at a Time
Most U.S. soybean farmers know they operate sustainably, but some of our biggest customers don’t. The soy checkoff plans to change that trend. A new example is an online tool developed through collaborative efforts of Midwest soybean farmers and University of ...
Read MoreUSB Mission/Sustainability
To help improve the environmental footprint of the entire U.S. soybean industry, including raising awareness among farmers on why sustainability is important.
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