Earth911 Podcast: Land to Market’s Wyatt Ball on Regenerative Agriculture Labeling

Finding regeneratively grown products is getting easier. Our guest today is Wyatt Ball, business development manager for the Land to Market product labeling program. The program focuses on connecting brands, producers, and participants in the food supply chain through their shared concern for land health.

The practice of regenerative agriculture first took root in the 1960s and ’70s after publisher Robert Rodale coined the term. But in recent years, an explosion of interest in regenerative practices followed the release of the film “Kiss the Soil” and during frightening evidence that climate change is accelerating. Regenerative agriculture has been shown to restore topsoil lost to erosion. It could help capture and store atmospheric carbon to help draw down the CO2 warming our planet.

Of course, standards take time to develop, and we wanted to invite back the Savory Institute for an update about a leading regenerative labeling program, the Land to Market label. Founded in 2018, the Land to Market program helps companies source verified raw materials from regenerating land worldwide using empirical monitoring data from its Ecological Outcome Verification (EOV) monitoring program. The Land to Market team currently tracks 3.5 million acres through the Land to Market program and has certified more than 1,000 products.

In addition to consumers, Land to Market educates farmers about emerging regenerative practices with continuing guidance about how to improve land health. Because no two farms are alike, Land to Market avoids being dogmatic about which regenerative strategies to use, emphasizing a holistic land management philosophy based on scientific insights into soil health. You can learn more about Land to Market label at landtomarket.com.