land access

SILT Protects 40 More Acres in Johnson County

AVAILABLE FOR AFFORDABLE LONG-TERM LEASE Solon, Iowa – Johnson County farmer Brian Fleck and his spouse Sabra just donated 40 acres they call Bee Haven Farm to the Sustainable Iowa Land Trust (SILT), the group announced today. “The Flecks’ generosity has been a true inspiration to everyone at SILT, especially during such a challenging year,” said SILT Executive Director Suzan Erem. Bee Haven Farm is the second farm in Johnson County donated to SILT. SILT, based in West Branch, specializes in the permanent protection of farmland to grow nature-friendly table food. It helps beginning farmers launch their careers [...]

2020-12-11T21:13:48-06:00October 22nd, 2020|News|0 Comments
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Jupiter Ridge Farm Featured in Local Paper

Congratulations Will Lorentzen and Adrian White for their story featured in the Dubuque Telegraph Herald for being the first farmers in Iowa to sign a SILT Ground Lease. Will and Adrian will now pay a low monthly rent on land they and their heirs will always be able to farm while gaining equity in their home and buildings. Special thanks to land donor Steve Beaumont who made these dreams come true! Photo Credit: Dave Kettering, Dubuque Telegraph Herald  Read the Story

2023-07-21T10:51:10-05:00September 27th, 2020|News|0 Comments
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LSP Features Luzum Farm Transfer

The Land Stewardship Project, a SILT ally based in Minnesota, featured SILT and its transfer of the Luzum Heritage Farm to the Boone Family in a recent newsletter. We thank Brian DeVore, LSP Managing Editor and Media Coordinator for his work on this story. DeVore is author of Wildly Successful Farming, published by the University of Wisconsin Press. See the feature story in the LSP newsletter.  Hear or download the podcast.  “There’s just something that doesn’t feel morally right about me being the one that cashes in, when my ancestors worked their butts off to pass it on. [...]

2020-09-20T13:22:12-05:00September 6th, 2020|News|0 Comments
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What do Equity and Inclusion Look Like?

This was the (corrected) lead story in SILT's June 2020 Update which can be read in full here. Land ownership has always been the measure and power of the wealthiest people in our country. America was built on land speculation. In 1773, "Two land companies had been created to speculate in the West...the Ohio Company of Associates, which proposed to purchase 500,000 acres beyond the Ohio River; and the Loyal Land Company, organized by Peter Jefferson...which aimed publicly at buying 800,000 acres of Kentucky but privately had ambitions of exploring and acquiring millions more..." George Washington was a surveyor, and [...]

2020-06-08T16:26:13-05:00June 3rd, 2020|News|0 Comments
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Ron and Karlene Humpal Donate 164 Acres

  Help SILT Find the Right Farmer - DONATE Today! Karlene and Ron Humpal stand in front of the 164 acres they donated to SILT in 2019. Ron and Karlene Humpal donated their 164-acre farm just five miles northwest of Decorah in 2019.  SILT now protects nine farms with a total of 935 acres through agricultural conservation easements and land donations. “This is for the future,” Ron Humpal said. “It’s to help protect the watershed. And it’s one way to get back to small farming.” Ron is the founder of a small business doing contract work for a [...]

2019-10-10T18:47:27-05:00October 10th, 2019|News|Comments Off on Ron and Karlene Humpal Donate 164 Acres
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Farmer Chosen for Luzum Heritage Farm

photo by Seed Savers Exchange SILT announces the signing of a lease with Tor Janson, a seventh generation Iowan who grew up in Toledo, IA, Iowa City, and Seattle. A Grinnell College graduate, he has worked on ecological restoration projects all around the Midwest. Tor returned to Iowa seven years ago to work at Seed Savers Exchange. He is looking forward to building a farm grounded in the ecology, history, and food traditions of the Upper Midwest. Tor will farm this transition year while applications remain open for a longer-term lease. Due to the timing of the Luzum donation this summer, the [...]

2017-11-06T08:52:22-06:00November 6th, 2017|News|Comments Off on Farmer Chosen for Luzum Heritage Farm
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SILT in the News

SILT has been making waves across the country and across the "pond!"  In addition to our very own feature in Civil Eats last month, great stories in the Manchester Guardian and Rodale Institute's This Organic Life brought readers news of the innovative land access work we're doing here in Iowa. SILT  provides affordable land access to young farmers, gives retiring farmers and landowners peace of mind, advocates nature-friendly, neighborhood-friendly farming, increases our supply of healthy food, sets the trend among land trusts for focusing on farms, improves Iowa's water quality through private sector, voluntary programs, provides opportunity to Slow Money investors [...]

2017-04-18T16:39:53-05:00April 18th, 2017|News|0 Comments
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Ikerd on Farmland Access

SILT Adviser John Ikerd recently posted a great article he wrote about farmland access for sustainable farmers. We think you'll recognize a lot of his solutions. What can we do now to give older farmers a decent retirement while transferring land affordably to the next generation? Let us know your thoughts. Meanwhile, contact us if you know wealthy funds or foundations interested in making real, permanent, proven change in Iowa. Really. We're serious. Thanks!

2023-09-13T11:28:08-05:00April 12th, 2016|News|0 Comments
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