Regenerative Agriculture: Expert Insights on Soil Health & Sustainability

What is regenerative agriculture? Explore expert insights on soil health, biodiversity, climate resilience, sustainable farming practices, and the future of food.

What is regenerative agriculture, and how can it help shape a healthier, more sustainable food system? Regenerative agriculture is an evolving approach to farming that focuses on improving soil health, supporting biodiversity, protecting natural resources, and building resilient agricultural systems. From cover cropping and crop rotation to reduced soil disturbance and integrated livestock management, regenerative farming practices can offer important benefits for farms and ecosystems, depending on how they are implemented and the local context. In this comprehensive guide, agricultural experts share their insights on the science, principles, potential benefits, and challenges of regenerative agriculture—and what these practices may mean for farmers, food systems, climate resilience, and the future of sustainable food.

What Is Regenerative Agriculture?

Just pop into your natural food market and it won’t take long for you to spy regenerative agriculture claims on food labels. For example, Roots Potato Chips proudly positions a “Regeneratively Grown Potatoes” claim, “Meet Your Farmer” QR code, and Soil & Climate Health label icon on their packages, which are as prominent as the sea salt and barbeque flavor descriptors. Indeed, regenerative agriculture is so trendy that 58 of the world’s 100 leading food companies are focusing on this form of farming, according to the Organic & Non-GMO Report. (1)

While there is no standardized definition or regulations for the term regenerative agriculture, the concept describes an agricultural philosophy that goes beyond merely doing no harm to actually making it better. After all, agriculture takes a heavy toll on our planet; it’s responsible on a global level for 26% of greenhouse gas emissions, 50% of land use, 70% of water use, and 78% of water pollution. (2)

This approach asks food systems stakeholder to ponder all aspects of the food system—cultivation, production, distribution, and consumption—through a connected web that ultimately nourishes people and the planet. The paradigm is about farming and ranching techniques that are in harmony with nature, rather than trying to dominate the landscape through technological advancements. Yet regenerative agriculture is not new; Indigenous peoples have practiced these techniques over the millennia, and producers have applied these age-old strategies over the decades.

“Working with nature rather than against it is the holy grail of regenerative agriculture,” says Cole Mannix, president of Montana-based Old Salt Co-OP, which connects regenerative livestock ranchers with consumers. “We want to improve soil fertility while being productive and producing a nutrient-dense food, which means carefully managing the land in terms of livestock density, length of rest, wildlife borders, and water runoff.” This is in stark contrast to most degraded agricultural lands, where livestock and crops are kept separate, the soil is disrupted when roots are severed during harvest, and crops rely on chemical inputs, adds Mannix.

“Regenerative agriculture looks at whole systems, such as soil, water, biodiversity, animals, and humans, and how to restore and improve those systems by following a set of principles aimed at improving the health of the soil and the systems,” explains Wendy Millet, ranch director at TomKat Ranch, an 1800-acre grassfed cattle ranch in the San Francisco Bay area which focuses on holistic solutions that improve soil health, climate stability, water quality and availability, animal welfare, human health, and biodiversity.

At its very core, regenerative agriculture is all about the soil. “The microbiome of the soil is incredibly similar to the microbiome of the human gut, which we know has a huge influence on our bodies. Restoring the soil health is like restoring the health of the human gut biome. To properly diagnose an issue or improve the health of the soil or gut, you need to look at the whole system,” says Millet.

“Regenerative organic agriculture restores and builds living soil, improving its ability to sequester carbon, retain water, and support plant and human life. By integrating cover crops, compost, low-till systems, and crop-livestock integration, regenerative practices aim to heal and improve the land—not just avoid harm,” says Arianna Bozzolo, PhD, research director at Rodale Institute California Organic Center, who is studying regenerative practices in strawberry farming. “In conventional strawberry farming systems, the soil is typically fumigated before every single planting cycle, often with chemicals that harm soil life and compromise long-term fertility. In contrast, regenerative organic systems use multi-year crop rotations, integrating cover crops, compost, and sometimes animals to restore soil health between strawberry plantings. This not only improves productivity over time, but eliminates the need for fumigation altogether.”

According to the Soil Health Academy (3), regenerative agriculture includes the following general principles:

• Know your context. Determine practices that are a fit for the specific farm and community, considering its relationship to the land, soil, and water.
• Do not disturb. Mirror natural ecosystems, where you won’t find bare soil or mechanical or chemical disturbance of soil systems.   
• Cover and build surface armor. Avoid disturbing the soil as much as possible to enhance water cycles and the soil microbiome.
• Mix it up. Introduce a diversity of plants, microbes, insects, wildlife, and livestock to enhance soil health without the need for intensive inputs, such as synthetic fertilizers and pesticides.
• Keep living roots in the soil. Promote plants with active root systems, such as perennials, cover crops, and trees, for as much of the year as possible to help prevent erosion and water and nutrient loss.
• Grow healthy animals and soil together. Include diverse livestock in grazing systems that support soil health by providing aeration and nutrition without the use of chemical inputs.

Regenerative Practices

There is no instruction manual on how to practice regenerative agriculture. “What it comes down to are the agricultural practices that are appropriate for a place and time. There are totally different nuances related to geographies, climate, and soil composition. What may be considered regenerative or sustainable practices in Iowa right now, may not be the same in five years or in other parts of the US. For example, we have water issues in central Iowa in which nitrates applied on fields in the north and northwest part of the state and they runoff into major rivers that provide water to the greater Des Moines area. It’s the quality of water that’s the issue in Iowa right now, not the lack of access to water as it is in western states such as California,” says Angie Tagtow, DrPH, MS, RD, LD, founder and chief strategist for Äkta Strategies, a consulting firm that designs authentic solutions for systems change. 

Some common regenerative practices include:

• Planting cover crops, such as legumes, to offer protection for the soil from water and nutrition loss, a natural source of nitrogen, weed suppression, and a potential revenue stream.
• Rotating crops to manage pests and diseases naturally, build soil fertility, and break pathogen cycles without synthetic inputs.
• No or reduced mechanical tilling of the soil to avoid disturbing the soil structure and protect from water and soil loss.
• Introducing animals into the farming system through holistic grazing, which mimics the way large herds like bison moved across grasslands, providing nutrition for the soil.
• No or reduced fossil fuel-based inputs, including pesticides and herbicides, to help build soil health and utilize natural systems for managing pests.
• Composting organic material to build soil, instead of relying on fossil-based fertilizers that are more prone to runoff.
• Supporting agroforestry, which mimics forest systems by integrating trees and shrubs with persistent root systems into crop and animal agriculture.
• Sequestering more carbon in the soil to reduce the climate impact of farmland and increase resilience.

• Cultivating conservation borders, like hedgerows and riparian buffers, to act as habitat for beneficial organisms and help protect water quality and mitigate flooding.
• Nurture communities by producing healthy food that supports human health, while being mindful of fair labor practices, social inequities in agriculture, and animal welfare.

The benefits of regenerative agriculture are plentiful. These practices can improve soil health and fertility, produce healthier food, reduce carbon emissions, decrease water use and pollution, reduce use of synthetic inputs like pesticides and fertilizers, provide greater local economic development, ensure long-term viability of the land, and support fair and equitable labor and animal welfare. Regenerative farmers and ranchers even report being happier in their work. (4)

Millet has observed improved soil health from the impacts of adaptive grazing, as the cattle cycle carbon through grazing and depositing urine and manure. In addition, their impact encourages increased water filtration that can provide resiliency in times of drought, replenished aquifers, greater greenhouse gas sequestration, and improved plant production, biodiversity, and water quality in streams through reduced erosion and run-off.

Tagtow, who owns farmland in Iowa, recounts, “Our land used to be conventional row crops, but 25 years ago we saw how degraded the soil was. We had erosion and water control problems, with water and soil running off into a creek.” Her husband took a conservation course to learn how to reconstruct a native tall grass prairie. In Iowa, prairies used to dominate, but now 80-85% of the state’s landscape is in agriculture with less than .1% remaining in prairies. “There are ecological benefits of prairies. The root systems are extensive, with native tall grass species and forbs that have flowers and reproduce. They help hold soil and moisture in place and create habitat for pollinators and critters. It’s the whole circle of life.” 

It can be challenging for producers to go 100% in on regenerative agriculture. But it should be considered a journey, with a focus on continual observation and improvement of processes. “Even if farmers and ranchers adopt two or three regenerative practices, they are taking steps towards restoring soil health, water quality, and overall ecosystem health. For example, they could plant a cover crop to help feed the soil microbes, minimize soil disturbance to keep the soil alive, and keep the ground covered to help reduce soil erosion and carbon loss,” says Millet.

Bounty of Green Washing

The lack of clear definitions and standards opens the possibility for greenwashing, which is rampant in the regenerative agriculture space. “Plenty of growers are not following the regenerative principles; they implement one practice and call it good, but that is not likely to truly improve the soil health and nutrient density of the food in ways that improve human health,” says Millet. Food companies are heralding their regenerative practices, such as reduced tilling, cover crops, or grazing, but they may not be sharing the whole picture. Some farms spray cover crops with herbicides after the growing cycle, which can disturb soil health. The practice of applying plastic mulch to preserve water and reduce weeds introduces plastics into the agroecosystem. And the positive impacts of livestock grazing may be difficult to apply in a CAFO (concentrated animal feeding operation) setting.

A recent study identified that regenerative agriculture plays a prominent role in the transition plans of large food companies, with early signs that it’s being misused by leaving out key principles and practices, such as climate justice and reducing chemical inputs. Among food companies using this term, the researchers found a lack of common definition, even among those who use it the most in their communications. Furthermore, the companies often presented soil carbon sequestration as a primary strategy, even though the potential is hotly debated and there is no reliable measurement to verify its impact. In particular, the report notes that meat and dairy companies are using carbon sequestration regenerative grazing claims to justify high production. The researchers argued that the food industry is not using regenerative agriculture to redesign the food production system, but to superimpose it on a business-as-usual model of practice. (5)

Regenerative Labeling

Some third-party regenerative agriculture verification programs are emerging on the landscape. In 2018, Regenerative Organic Certification (ROC) was introduced, which is overseen by the Regenerative Organic Alliance, a non-profit made up of experts in farming, ranching, soil health, animal welfare, and farmer and worker fairness. This logo may be seen on thousands of products, such as Patagonia, Nature’s Path, and Alter Eco.

“I strongly believe in the Regenerative Organic Certification as the gold standard—it ensures that soil health, animal welfare, and social fairness are upheld together. While I fully support any farming practices that reduce environmental harm and improve resilience—what in agronomy classes we often call simply good farming practices—regenerative organic agriculture pushes the conversation further by requiring a systems-level commitment to soil regeneration, biodiversity, and long-term ecological balance,” says Bozzolo.

The Ecological Outcome Verified standard of the Savory Institute’s Land to Market Program has been adopted by several food brands. Regenerative agriculture standards for foods have been introduced by the Soil Carbon Initiative, Certified by A Greener World, and Regenified, all of which emphasize building soil health, continuous improvement, and testing for positive planetary outcome. The California Department of Food and Agriculture appointed a Regenerative Agriculture Work Group in 2023, which drafted a recommendation in 2025 on defining regenerative agriculture for state policies and programs.

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References:

1. SCS Global Services. More certified regenerative foods are popping up on store shelves. Published August 16, 2023. Accessed July 30, 2025. https://www.scsglobalservices.com/news/more-certified-regenerative-foods-are-popping-up-on-store-shelves
2. Ritchie H, Roser M. Environmental impacts of food production.
   Our World in Data. Published January 2020. Accessed July 30, 2025.
   https://ourworldindata.org/environmental-impacts-of-food
3. California State University, Chico. TomKat Ranch Demonstration Site – Regenerative Agriculture. Chico State Center for Regenerative Agriculture and Resilient Systems. Accessed July 30, 2025.
   https://www.csuchico.edu/regenerativeagriculture/demos/tomkat-ranch.shtml
4. Carlisle L, Montenegro de Wit M. Regenerative agriculture: a critical review.
   npj Regenerative Agriculture. 2024;1(1). doi:10.1007/s43621-024-00662-z
   Accessed July 30, 2025.
   https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s43621-024-00662-z
5. NewClimate Institute. Navigating regenerative agriculture in corporate climate strategies. Published May 2024. Accessed July 30, 2025.
   https://newclimate.org/resources/publications/navigating-regenerative-agriculture-in-corporate-climate-strategies