Phil Smith

philandrobin.farm@gmail.com

Phil and Robin’s farming career began with their first crop year in 1980 and experienced all of the ‘hills and valleys’ of 45+ years of farming together while raising a family of four daughters. They also owned and operated a Pioneer seed agency business for 26 years, recently retiring in 2023. Their current 800-acre farm operation lies primarily along the north side of the Minnesota River bluff in southwestern Renville County. Though they had cared for cattle and sheep enterprises in the early decades, they currently do not have any livestock and operate a cash crop operation raising corn, soybeans, and some winter rye. They have a history of conservation efforts whereby they experimented with rotational grazing in the 1990’s and have no-tilled their entire soybean crop since 1992. They began converting their farm to regenerative agriculture in the fall of 2018 after considerable encouragement from fellow congregational members and friends, Grant and Dawn Breitkreutz. During their transition, Phil and Robin have done extensive soil testing and have recorded a considerable amount of data reflecting the changes taking place, not only agronomically, but economically. Because of the understood impact on the environment and the resulting positive impact on food and humanity, Phil and Robin’s entire family (four married daughters and 14 grandchildren) have wholeheartedly endorsed the legacy that is being augmented on the farm. Phil and Robin welcome opportunities to share their experiences in order to encourage others to transition to regenerative agriculture while doing their best to mentor those that seek to learn.