From Buzzword to Business: Regenerative Farming Grows Up

Food firms use long contracts to tie farmers to new growing methods

31 Jul 2025

A new kind of farm deal is taking root across the United States. Instead of buying crops year to year, food companies are beginning to invest in how those crops are grown. By linking contracts to soil practices, firms hope to secure reliable harvests in an age of climate uncertainty.

General Mills is among the leaders. The company has tied regenerative programs to more than 600,000 acres. Executives say the focus is not on marketing but on resilience, embedding practices that help farmers adapt to increasingly erratic weather. One analyst notes the real value lies in building sturdier supply chains rather than putting eco-labels on cereal boxes.

For farmers, the appeal is stability. Long-term contracts promise predictable income and reduce the gamble of testing unfamiliar techniques. Companies also provide agronomic support and a guaranteed buyer. Groups such as Practical Farmers of Iowa step in with measurement tools, making it easier to track results. In practice, the cost of transition shifts from individual growers to corporations with deeper pockets.

But challenges remain. The United States has no agreed definition of “regenerative,” leaving firms open to charges of greenwashing. Some growers also worry about yield dips during the early years of soil recovery. Despite these doubts, competition for verifiable acres is heating up. Land that can demonstrate measurable gains in soil health is suddenly more valuable.

The shift marks more than a marketing exercise. What once sounded like sustainability jargon is turning into supply chain strategy. Healthy soil is being recast as a kind of insurance policy for the future of food.