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Karl Kupers estimates that
his profit runs 10 to 12 percent ahead of farmers in a wheat
and fallow system. Photo by Phil Rasmussen. |
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Karl
Kupers
Harrington, Washington
Updated in 2005
Now, in their own words! |
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Summary of Operation
Wheat, barley, sunflowers, safflower, buckwheat, mustard, canola,
legumes and reclamation grasses on 4,400 acres
Flexible, no-till rotation of grain crops, cool- and warm-season
grasses and broadleaf crops
Problems Addressed
Moisture management. Karl Kupers’
farm falls within the “rain shadow” of the Cascade Mountains
and, thus, receives just 12 inches of rain a year. In this dryland
agricultural region, Washington farmers like Kupers strive all year
long to both retain moisture and fight erosion — twin goals
that are sometimes at cross purposes.
Erosion and pest problems. Most
farmers in the area grow wheat, alternating with summer fallow.
The fallow period relieves them of moisture concerns, as they aren’t
growing cash crops, but leaving exposed soil and making six to eight
tillage trips within eight months exacerbates erosion. Moreover,
growing wheat in a monocultural system creates an ideal situation
for weeds and disease to gain a foothold.
Background
In 1996, Kupers examined his options, looked at his soil, then weighed
the risks and benefits of taking a new approach to crop rotation
and tillage that would increase profits but also provide a more
diverse environment that would save soil and discourage pests.
With help from a SARE farmer/rancher grant, Kupers began planting
alternative crops like canola, millet, corn and buckwheat on 40-acre
plots in a no-till system to see if the model would conserve the
soil and still prove profitable. After several years of gradual
expansion, Kupers now uses no-till and continuous cropping on the
entire farm.
“This approach breaks the weed and disease cycles that can
be such a factor in a single-crop system,” says Kupers. “It
also conserves and improves the soil, maximizes water retention,
and offers a much broader spectrum of marketing opportunities.”
Kupers owns all of his equipment, but leases the farmland in keeping
with a tradition his family has kept for 53 years. When one of his
landlords died, he decided to buy a parcel to keep it in agriculture.
The other trustees who own his farm have accepted his transition
to a no-till, diversified operation in part because he started small
and managed his risk.
Kupers describes diversification as both a choice for farmers and
as a shift in the farming environment, and it is a shift that can
open up new markets and access to new consumers.
Focal Point of Operation —
Diversification and marketing
Under Kupers’ approach, diversification, no-till, and direct
marketing are integrally linked. Under traditional grain crop systems,
others set the prices; with diversification, Kupers can match his
crops to opportunities and fluctuations in the marketplace. Using
a system he calls “direct seeding,” he leaves his soil
untouched, placing seeds into the soil with a retrofitted drill.
The system preserves the scant soil moisture and minimizes erosion.
And, just as importantly, he can match his crops to his variable
conditions.
“I can respond to changes in the moisture content in the soil
and go with the crop that I think will work best,” he says.
For example, if the area receives adequate precipitation, Kupers
plants sunflowers as his broadleaf crop. If it’s dry, he grows
buckwheat. He also considers rainfall the main decision-maker on
whether to plan winter wheat or spring wheat.
He grows reclamation grasses for seed, which is used in the USDA
Conservation Reserve Program. Warm-season crops might include sunflower,
buckwheat and millet. Kupers seeds the warm-season crops in late
spring or early summer after any danger of frost.
“There is no recipe,” he says. “I know my work
would be much simpler if there were, but there are simply too many
variables. I take into account the weed and pest cycles, market
conditions, and moisture, and make decisions based on all these
things.”
This flexible approach enables Kupers to do what he does best: market
his products. With a partner, he formed a limited liability corporation
from which they and 10 other growers market commodities under their
“Shepherd’s Grain” label. They market mostly in
their region, sending their Pacific Northwest-grown products to
bakeries, food service businesses and high-end fast food outlets
in the Pacific Northwest.
“This is the truest form of identity preservation,”
he says. “We can walk into a bakery and look at the bag of
flour and introduce the farmer that grew that crop and he can tell
you what field it came from.”
Kupers is working to establish relationships with his buyers and
the consumers who purchase from them. He wants them to better understand
his environmentally sound “direct seeding system” and
not only enjoy their product, but also like to guarantee him and
the other Shepherd’s Grain farmers a reasonable return.
Teasing the marketing and production components apart is impossible,
and is one of the benefits and burdens of a holistic approach. “You
do have to know more,” he concedes, “but it’s
all part of making the shift to sustainability.”
Economics and Profitability
Kupers’ profit can run 10 to 12 percent ahead of farmers in
a wheat-and-fallow system, although those impressive numbers are
dependent upon adequate rainfall. He’s satisfied with the
farm’s current status, feeling that the extra effort of the
no-till transition has paid off, but points out that he’s
in it for the long term.
“Most of the real profits are in the future,” he says,
because the cumulative impact of good soil management will bring
increasing yields. That said, he is seeing improved profits now,
along with operational savings, particularly in weed and disease
management expenses.
“What I’m doing is a complete reversal of conventional
farming,” he says, “and the profitability is only one
part of the system. I’m not taking the profit out. I have
the profit because I have a whole system that makes profitability
sustainable.”
By diversifying, he tries different responses to pests and weeds,
and these new modes also bring with them savings in capital equipment
costs. He can seed his 5,000-plus acres with one 30-foot drill because
he spreads it out among different crops from March to early June.
He can use one combine to harvest because he starts on grass in
early July and finishes with sunflowers in late October. By contrast,
a typical wheat rotation requires some 120 feet of drills and at
least three combines, an additional sprayer — and more labor.
Kupers’ farm was certified by The Food Alliance, which verifies
and endorses environmentally sound agriculture and makes consumers
aware of the choices they can make to support sustainability. The
effort aims to turn consumer support into more profits for farmers.
Kupers was the first large-scale wheat farmer to earn The Food Alliance
certification, and he hopes to lead by example.
“It’s not for me to tell my neighbors how to farm,”
he says, “but I can farm in a new way and show that it’s
profitable, and I can show that I can meet and exceed the returns
on neighboring operations.”
Environmental Benefits
Still, Kupers plays down his enhanced profitability and talks more
about the enhanced environmental benefit — he feels strongly
that environmental and economic goals should be understood as being,
in the end, exactly the same thing.
Kupers’ varying crop rotations tend to break the weed and
disease cycles that can plague single-crop operations, so he applies
fewer inputs. Using no-till lessens erosion and also builds carbon
in the soil. By improving the soil, Kupers hopes to reduce his reliance
on commercial fertilizers. In 2000, soil tests revealed that the
no-till system had improved soil porosity, making nitrogen more
available to crops.
“This is what we want, as we can now apply our nitrogen in
a more timely manner and reduce total needs,” he says. “Our
goal is to create a healthy soil that feeds the plant.”
The driving force behind Kupers’ conversion to no-till is
an ongoing commitment to the health of the land. For Kupers, profitability
and soil conservation are linked. “I’ve learned that
if I feed the soil, the soil will take care of the plant,”
he says.
Community and Quality of Life Benefits
Kupers farmed his land conventionally for 23 years, but over the
past several years — since his first SARE grant and his first
test plots of no-till alternative cropping — his satisfaction
with farming has increased.
“For me, personally, it’s a way of defining my moral
position with the land,” he says.
Conserving and building the soil brings rewards that can’t
always be counted in direct dollars but are central to the farming
enterprise. The added work of marketing a range of farm products
adds variety and interest to the job, a bonus for this unusually
energetic farmer. He seems temperamentally suited to making quick
but informed decisions.
“Sometimes I don’t know for sure what I’m going
to plant until I’ve been in the field and seen the conditions,”
he says. The soil itself, along with an understanding of market
conditions off the farm, combine to support a flexible approach
that Kupers clearly values.
While it’s true that as a tenant Kupers may not have the option
to pass the farm along to the next generation, he understands that
the improved land has its own kind of legacy, quite apart from who
is actually farming it. He describes his relationship with the land
as a “moral passion;” this moral momentum has informed
his choices as he has made a true paradigm shift toward diversity.
One result is that he has become an advocate for sustainable alternatives
to conventional farming. He helped to bring the canola industry
to Washington state, and has become a sought-after speaker on agricultural
issues.
Transition Advice
Kupers thinks that farmers starting with no-till, diversified cropping
should start small, much the way he did. “There’s a
learning curve,” he says, “and you will make some mistakes.”
The most common mistake, he says, is impatience.
“It takes five to seven years to get the land through the
transition to decide which crops will suit your individual conditions,”
he says. Making a gradual change in selected fields means the stakes
are lower and the temptation to fall back into conventional is easier
to resist.
“It’s important not to get discouraged and start plowing
again,” says Kupers, “because you will lose everything
you were on the road to gaining. Commitment is important.”
The Future
Now that Kupers has made the transition from test plots to placing
the whole farm in diversified no-till, it seems that in some way
the future is already here. But the conservation and improvement
of the soil on Kupers’ farm is an ongoing process, as is the
seasonal selection of crops, an important element in the farm’s
long-term sustainability. Because the rotation is open, Kupers has
a continuing option of trying something new.
On the marketing side, he knows “eco-friendly” food
can capture 40 percent or more of market share, a lofty yet attainable
goal.
“Our long range goal is to develop a value chain with the
consumer that adds a diverse market for products raised under a
direct seed system through an assurance that the producer receives
a true cost of production and a reasonable rate of return.”
 Profile
written by Helen Husher
Now, in their own words!
For more information:
Karl Kupers
P.O. Box 465
Harrington, WA 99134
kjkupers@golfing.org
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