Ecdysis Foundation

10/12/2026

Thank you farmers!

We've had the privilege to learn from over 2,000 farmers and their farms over the years. We can't wait to meet even more.



Stonewall Pecan Co

10/09/2026

What are we up to in the lab?

In Yam’s case, he’s analyzing soil DNA data to help us understand what’s living in the soil. This data helps tell the bigger story of how microbes interact with plants and influence how farms function.

10/07/2026

Have you participated in the 1000 Farms Initiative, Project Ignite, or Project Avalanche? You can now access your farm's data through our newly developed Grower Portal!

Check your email for your login information. Invitations were sent on October 2.

The Grower Portal brings your data together in one place, so you can explore your results across soil, water, plants, birds, and insects.

Have a question or learn something new?! Send us a message. We’d love to hear what you’re learning from your farm’s data.

10/07/2026

Our main field season has come and gone, and somehow it went by so fast that we never even got around to an end-of-season recap. 😅

Now, as we prepare for winter and get back to processing samples, analyzing data, and continuing our research from the pole shed here in South Dakota, we’re taking a moment to look back at another summer in the field.

We hope you enjoy these "not too shabby" sketches by the incredibly talented Ahna Halvorson.

🤔 Which one is your favorite?

10/02/2026

Spooky season is here! 🕷️🕸️

10/02/2026

Our newest peer-reviewed research is getting attention across the country, with Public News Service stories in South Dakota, Idaho, and Washington highlighting what the data could mean for farmers and the future of food production.

Here are a few takeaways from the coverage:

👉 South Dakota: Bruce Staufer of Frosty Acres Ranch shared what he saw after converting soybean fields to pasture: insects returned almost immediately, followed by birds. “The pastures just hum with the sound of flying insects.”

👉 Idaho: The story highlighted how regenerative farmers in western Idaho have reduced production costs by restoring microbial life and using practices like compost and cover crops, reducing their reliance on costly inputs.

👉 Washington: Melissa Spear of Tilth Alliance emphasized that transitioning from conventional to regenerative and organic farming isn't easy, and that farmers need communities and support systems to help make that transition possible.

Our research found that regenerative farms stored 39% more soil carbon than conventional farms.

The study also found that transitioning all U.S. field crops to regenerative agriculture could capture enough additional carbon to offset 1.5 years of the country's total greenhouse gas emissions.

📖 Read all three stories and the full peer-reviewed research paper through the links in the comments.

09/30/2026

This crew of SDSU undergraduate students recently joined us, and we want to introduce them to you!💚

09/28/2026

Our newest peer-reviewed research is making waves!

In this article featured in "The Epoch Times", Mollie Engelhart writes this about the paper "Regenerative Agriculture: Connecting Soil Carbon Storage, Biodiversity, and Profit":

👉 "That finding should cause us to reconsider what we mean when we call a farm productive. If one field produces more bushels but requires more fertilizer, more pesticides, and more purchased inputs, while another produces sufficient food, supports more life, holds more water, stores more carbon, and leaves the farmer with the same profit, which farm is truly more productive?"

👉 "The real victory documented in this study is not one carbon number. It is that farms managed with greater respect for natural processes contained more life while remaining economically viable. The carbon, fungi, plants, insects, and birds were not separate victories. They were different expressions of a system returning to function."

👉 "Regenerative agriculture offers another possibility: The farmer is a keystone species. Human beings can certainly degrade land, but that is not the only effect we can have. A thoughtful farmer can use animals, plants, disturbance, and recovery to increase biological abundance. We can move cattle before they overgraze. We can give plants time to recover. We can protect the soil from the sun, return manure to the land, increase plant diversity, and make room for the organisms that perform work no machine can reproduce."

🔗Full Epoch Times article and newest research paper linked in the comments.

09/24/2026

brought together people from all kinds of backgrounds and areas of interest, all looking for solutions to the challenges facing our food system.

As Jon put it:

“Whatever that thing is for you, I’ve got a data point that says regenerative ag does that.”

Mic drop. 🎤

09/23/2026

Check out the news story by Julie Zeneroudi in The New Lede about our newest peer-reviewed science: "Regenerative agriculture: connecting soil carbon storage, biodiversity, and profit".

The article highlighted several key findings from the study:

👉 Regenerative farms store 39% more carbon in soil than conventional farms.

👉 If all US field crops were managed regeneratively, the additional carbon stored could equal 1.49 times annual US greenhouse gas emissions.

👉 This carbon storage potential exceeds all other proposed tech-based climate solutions by 2050, combined.

We liked this section with quotes from Emily Heaton, professor of regenerative agriculture at the University of Illinois:

" 'Some of the carbon that plants take out of the air ends up going below ground through the plant’s roots and below ground structures, and if it’s not tilled, that carbon stays there,' explained Emily Heaton, professor of regenerative agriculture at the University of Illinois.

The findings don’t surprise Heaton. 'I think agriculture and regenerative agriculture has been overlooked as a tool for climate mitigation,' she said.

Heaton said that while people may be familiar with carbon capture technologies such as direct air capture, where carbon is pulled directly from the atmosphere through chemicals or physical filters, 'those have a much more limited scope to take carbon out of the atmosphere than plants. Plants evolved to take carbon out of the atmosphere. It’s what they do, and they do it without needing any electricity.' she said."

The article also highlighted the correlation between biodiversity and carbon storage, and how regenerative farms carbon sinks rather than losing carbon through practices that degrade soil, such as tillage.

At Ecdysis, we are finding that life and biodiversity on farms are critical in the measurement of regenerative outcomes.

Read the full story at the link below 👇

A former USDA scientist is sharing his research on regenerative agriculture after visits with 2,000 farms across the US. His latest findings suggest regenerative agriculture can play a vital role in carbon capture.