JULY - 20239 ENVIRONMENTAL BUSINESS REVIEWFarmer Focused Conservation Salesacres of improved nutrient management, 147 acres of prairie restoration, 124 saturated buffers or bioreactors, three ponds, and one wetland over the last two and half years.This innovation in the conservation space has created huge demand for the Heartland Co-op Conservation Department both from the growers they serve, but also in collaborations with public agencies and private industries. These public-private partnerships are groundbreaking in creating a space where partners with different perspectives on agriculture can come together to achieve common goals. The Practical Farmers of Iowa Cover Crop Cost Share Program, the Central Iowa Cover Crop Partnership, and the Lower Cedar Watershed Management Plan are three primary public/private partnerships Heartland Co-op is a part of. These partnerships create unique opportunities for farmers to implement conservation through first of its kind services, and extensive funding dedicated to these practices.With a commitment to serving Midwest farmers, Heartland Co-op's Conservation Department has two goals: One, we will continue to be an instrumental part of farming operations to maximize productivity, profitability, and longevity to keep farming a generational labor of love, and; Two, we will bring upstream and downstream environmental stakeholders to the table with farmers to create long-lasting and truly effective partnerships that focus on real conservation deliverables instead of continued inaction through division. This innovation in the conservation space has created huge demand for the Heartland Co-op Conservation Department both from the growers they serve, but also in collaborations with public agencies and private industries
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