Michigan

 

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• 9.9 million acres of land used

 

 

• $102 billion Michigan Food and Agricultural Industry

 

 

• 2nd most diverse agricultural state
  • 60% crop
  • 40% livestock

 

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Farm size breakdown:

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Sustainable Agriculture

• The living soil – crop rotation, green manure
• Protect the water – reduce runoff
• Ecological Pest Management
• Maximize biodiversity – Hedgerows, cover crops, bird boxes
• More food dollars for the farmer – direct marketing
• Diets that reflect seasonal or regional constraints
  • Current system does not i.e. strawberries 365 days/yr

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Programs Around Michigan 

• 52,194 farms statewide
  • 45,000 in Michigan Farm Bureau (Michigan’s Voice of Agriculture)

 

MASS (Michigan Agricultural Surplus System)

• Rescued 35 million pounds of food
• Invested $5 million into MI agribusiness
• Partnered with over 50 farmers
• Produce distributed in all 83 counties in Michigan
• Produce to over 1 million people every year

 

 

Food Bank of Eastern Michigan

• 331,500 People impacted
• Distributes over 25 million pounds of groceries
• 22 Counties
• 400 Partner Agencies
• 7,000+ volunteers

 

 

 

 

 

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Organic Farming

• Promotes and enhances biodiversity, biological cycles and social biological activity.
• 3 years since synthetic fertilizer + pest management
• Synthetic nitrogen fertilizers require natural gas as a feedstock and oil dependent distribution

Animals

• Organic feed
• No added hormones/access to pasture
• 30% from Earth for food
• Mother’s last 1/3 of life raised organically

 

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Source – Link to Michigan Farm Bureau