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AFT report: developing farmland can jeopardize food security, environment

Millions of acres of US agricultural land were developed or converted to residential, commercial, and industrial uses between 2001 and 2016, according to a new report by American Farmland Trust.

About 11 million acres of ag land was lost during that time and more than 4 million of those acres were considered “nationally significant,” or the best land for food and crop production.

John Piotti is the president and CEO of AFT.

“That 11 million acres amounts to 2,000 acres per day,” he says. “That means that every day, farmers and ranchers on average have 2,000 fewer acres on which to work to feed our communities, to sequester carbon, to make living and support families.”

He says compromising productive agricultural land can threaten farm viability, the environment, and ability to fight climate change.

“This highly productive land also has the most potential to sequester carbon and fight climate change and with every acre that’s converted, our challenges become even harder,” he says. “In fact, every acre of developed land emits over 50 times more carbon than it did when it was being farmed.”

Piotti says states must do more to protect farmland…”we call on all states to map their ag land so they can manage it well, build from the programs they already have, support farm viability and land access, and put the highest priority on saving that most important versatile and resilient land,” he says.  

The Farms Under Threat: The State of the States report found that each state needs to secure high-quality farmland to ensure the food system is resilient in the face of disruptions. The 12 states with the most threatened agricultural land are: Texas, North Carolina, New Jersey, Tennessee, Georgia, Rhode Island, Connecticut, South Carolina, Massachusetts, Delaware, Florida, and Pennsylvania.

AFT says Farmland is at severe risk in the South where threats are high, but policies are limited. Six of the top 12 states with the most threatened ag land are in the South.

Piotti says AFT is working to protect agricultural resources. AFT says it will act to double permanently protected farmland by 2040 and reduce the rate of farmland conversion by half by 2030 and by 75 percent by 2040.

AFT is establishing the National Agricultural Land Network, a nation-wide network of land trusts and government entities focused on protecting agricultural lands. It is also providing new leadership in new locations, reinvigorating conservation easement work, continuing work with US Climate Alliance states, and promoting research-based decision making.