Rural Illinois was blessed with nutrient-rich soil that has made it a fertile cradle for crops. Soybeans and corn are its economic heartbeat, covering over 21 million of the state’s 26.3 million farmland acres.
This landscape has been supported by decades of fertilizing, tilling and a two-crop strategy that have kept the fields neat and the output high. But in the long term, these practices are a prescription for mounting soil burnout and water pollution.
Government policies, private corporations and consumer demand all encourage this myopic approach that has entrenched Illinois as the nation’s No. 1 producer of soybeans and No. 2 producer of corn. Farmers who want to grow differently are constrained by rising rents, expensive labor, bureaucracy and tradition.
But as climate change scorches and parches the other regions responsible for growing most of the nation’s fruits and vegetables, Illinois farms will become even more important for national food security. Do farmers, politicians, investors and consumers have the willpower to break with the status quo and maximize Illinois’ growing power?
Over the next two weeks, the Tribune is publishing a series of stories analyzing and exploring the forces keeping Illinois shackled to soybeans and corn.
- Part 1: Who owns the land
- Part 2: What drives crop selection
- Part 3: How the work gets done
- Part 4: Why grocery stores don’t carry more local produce
