BROWNSBURG, Ind. — The Indiana Soybean Alliance (ISA) welcomed the Chinese Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Foodstuffs, Native Produce and Animal By-Products (CFNA) and key industry stakeholders to Mike Starkey’s family farm in Brownsburg on July 12.

 

Starkey said this is the third Chinese delegation to visit his farm with a focus on conservation and sustainability.

“We are a sixth-generation farm,” he noted. “This has been around for a while.”

His 2,600-acre farm is not typical, as he does not stick to all-traditional farming methods. He explained he could not stand by the methods that his father used; he simply can’t make a living doing so. Instead, by introducing no-till and annual  ryegrass as a cover crop, Starkey has considerably reduced his expenses and use of herbicides. In addition, his profit margins have increased substantially.

There are significant benefits that come with using no-till farming, Starkey said. Leaving ground untilled allows more water and nutrients to seep into the soil.

This method can also halt soil erosion. Soil becomes more fertile when it isn’t heavily disturbed, he added. Earthworms allow Starkey to use considerably less fertilizer as they break down the remnants of last year’s crop and turn it into valuable organic matter that enriches soil.

Starkey changed his farming practices not only for personal gain, but for the sake of the water the Eagle Creek watershed provides. The stream on his farm is the third-largest tributary that supplies Indianapolis with drinking water – he told his CFNA guests that they took their morning showers with water from his property.

“I am part of an intense water monitoring program that tracks all the water that comes off my farm,” Starkey explained. “They are finding that the water that flows off my farm is lower in nitrates than water in the natural stream.”

 

Not everyone is hip to leaving tradition behind. Starkey said there are still those who farm in old ways. Many farmers still till their land, spending time and money only to weaken and erode precious soil.

Likewise, he said many douse their farmland with pesticides and herbicides that can end up washing into bodies of water intended for drinking.

Starkey believes, sooner or later, farmers will have to opt for conservation measures and sustainable farming practices over tradition.

“Sustainable farming methods that are not destructive to the soil are becoming more of a priority for China,” said Ed Ebert, senior director of Grain Production and Utilization for the ISA. “The Chinese buy 25 percent of all U.S. soybeans. Metaphorically, that means every fourth row grown is shipped to China.”

Ebert explained how the ISA supports sustainable farming operations such as Starkey’s. “We sponsor research in terms of conservation and management techniques. We have funded programs this year and in the past, as well.” 

 

The CFNA’s visit held considerable significance. “This level of group hardly evercomes to Indiana, but rather, to another major soybean producer like Iowa or Illinois,” said Ebert. “But our partners at USSEC (U.S. Soybean Export Council) made this trip available to the Chinese delegation.”

A day after the event at Starkey’s farm, Chinese soy buyers signed a contract agreeing to buy 460 million bushels of this year’s U.S. soy product. China will pay $5 billion for its purchase, which is a $1 billion increase from last year. China imports about 60 percent of U.S. soybeans each year.

When asked about his first impressions of Starkey’s farm, Xiaoping Zhang, country director of the USSEC in China, said,

“The farm is very impressive and uses unique cultivation methods. “It is good for the U.S. industry to promote sustainable farming; this method

of farming is in China’s near future.”