Regenerative Growers in Florida Aim to Improve Soil for Health of Food, Environment, Consumers and Workers

Blueberries, green beans, yellow squash, red onions, purple cabbage, oranges. At markets across Florida, colorful produce signals freshness and nutrition and attracts consumers. 

Here, as in other states, food’s journey from farm to table begins by removing evidence of the farm. Namely: scrubbing away the soil that forms the foundation of our food system. 

And as climate change intensifies and weather events become more extreme, this foundation is increasingly under stress.

In few places is this more visible than the Sunshine State, where there are 44,000 farms (including nurseries and properties raising animals, vegetables, and citrus and other fruit) on 9.7 million acres, about 30 percent of the state’s total land.

In February, the state’s agriculture commissioner estimated losses of $3.2 billion, following two storms and record-low temperatures. That’s on top of drought conditions extending across more than 95 percent of the state at the time and increased wildfire activity. Conditions peaked in May, when 82 percent of Florida was in the two most severe drought category conditions. 

State leaders said the combined weather events placed unprecedented strain on Florida’s farmers and ranchers. And the swings between extremes wreak havoc on soil and the plants, animals and people that depend on it.

It also ramps up pressure from pests. A 2018 study found that a 1-degree Celsius increase in temperature leads to a 10- to 25-percent increase in crop losses from infestations. In June, Florida sugarcane producers received a Pesticide Emergency/Crisis Exemption from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to combat pasture mealybug, a newly recorded species that feeds on sap, causing fungus growth that blocks photosynthesis. 

The unpredictability has upended decades of wisdom and practices. 

“As a grower, you’re preparing—when do you plant, when do you harvest, when do you rest,” said Jehangir Bhadha, an associate professor of soil, water and nutrient management at the University of Florida. “Sporadic weather you didn’t expect can impact your cash crop growing at a particular stage.” 

In response to the chaos, some farmers and ranchers are turning to regenerative agriculture. It’s a broad approach aimed at improving soil health, protecting yields and livelihoods and building resilience. Strategies like reduced tillage and increased biological diversity helps soil retain water, withstand extreme weather and remain productive.

It’s a growing movement. 

There’s no official count but in recent years Florida operations of all sizes, especially those already using organic techniques, have been joining in. That includes Florida Crystals, farming 10,000 of its 194,500 acres in Palm Beach County regeneratively. Now, state and federal agencies are preparing to dole out funds. A new $700 million USDA pilot program encourages practices that improve long-term stability.

Public health—exploring the link between farming practices, nutrition and chronic disease—is a driving force. Climate health is a beneficiary.

Starting With Soil

Most plants need three things to grow: sunlight, water and soil. 

“Soil is the matrix, bringing everything together,” Bhadha said. 

When soil degrades, its ability to support plant life declines and crops become more vulnerable. Additional inputs, such as fertilizer, may be required to maintain productivity. 

While Bhadha noted that fertilizer itself is not a problem, “the key is providing the right dose at the right time, the right source, and the right amount.” The wrong amount harms plants, people and the environment: Excess nutrients become contaminants, attracting pests and disease.

Karla Dascal, who owns Paradise Farms in Homestead, one of the state’s first USDA certified organic farms, said a teaspoon of healthy soil can contain billions of microorganisms, making it one of the most biologically diverse habitats on Earth. 

In 2021, four years after she purchased the operation, Dascal acquired Regenerative Organic Certification to highlight her emphasis on treating farmworkers, animals and soil well. 

This certification, which is thorough but not federally regulated, requires maintaining organic certification, which is federally regulated. Critics say the department’s inspections and certification testing, which take time and staff, have been problematic, even before the USDA’s current cutbacks and restructuring.  

Paradise Farm’s 17 acres are within the Everglades Agricultural Area, where soil is largely made up of organic materials and helps make the region so bountiful. Most of Florida’s soil is sandy—in even the best weather it drains quickly and struggles to retain nutrients. 

Among other things, the University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences  public outreach program works with farmers (and gardeners) to determine soil type and how to enrich it for optimal health in sync with growing the desired fruits and vegetables.  

Getting it right is good for crops—and for the animals and people that come in contact with the soil. “There’s not yet a test that tells an individual, ‘you’re getting enough beneficial environmental microbes,’” said Dascal, who also operates a wellness treatment and event space. “There’s growing evidence regular exposure to healthy soils that support diverse microbial communities can improve the human immune system.” 

Research shows exposure to environmental microorganisms impacts health. 

All day long people and animals are exposed to good and bad microorganisms by breathing, eating or drinking, touching things and being bitten by insects or other animals.

The Paradise team measures organic matter, microbial activity, fungal-to-bacterial balance and other indicators of soil health. “As these indicators improve we expect the surrounding microbial ecosystem to become healthier as well,” said Dascal. “By reducing synthetic pesticides and fertilizers, improving soil biology, and creating a healthier working environment, we believe we are benefitting everyone who works here.” 

This is vital. It’s well-established that excessive use of chemical pesticides and fertilizers can be detrimental to human health.

Most farmers going regenerative place such high value in this point it’s a named tenet of the practice—healthy and fair conditions for farmworkers—along with ethical treatment of animals and, as noted, enhancing soil health. 

“Caring for people who work on the farm is part of our mission,” said Dascal. “We also recognize that healthy ecosystems tend to support healthier communities, through cleaner air, cleaner water, or daily interaction with living soils and plants.”

Regenerative In Reality

If organic farming is differentiated from conventional farming by its prioritizing of human health over crop yield, best illustrated by the absence of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides, then regenerative can be differentiated from organic by prioritizing soil health as a sustainable way to deliver organic products to all life-forms. 

That said, the term regenerative still has no standardized, agreed-upon definition. 

Sharon Raszap Skorbiansky, a former USDA research economist, said disagreements on the path to standardizing the term include how many regenerative practices a farmer needs to implement to be considered regenerative. It’s a frustration for farmers who hold themselves to the strictest, most comprehensive parameters but could share a label with an operator who practices far fewer regenerative practices. 

When organic matter builds up in soil, the soil gets better at holding on to moisture. Bhadha said even just the morning dew absorbed by healthy soil can allow a grower to prolong farming duration through a drought period. It also improves resilience in heavy rainfall and floods, absorbing and holding more water than unhealthy soil.

That’s useful in Florida, where storms causing more than $1 billion in agricultural losses to the state have been more frequent and intense in recent years. The threat of imminent storms puts more pressure on farmers and the people working on their land.

Inputs like fertilizers and pesticides can weaken plant roots. A shift—any change, from unexpected weather to management practice—“can cause farmers dependent on chemical products to lose their whole crop, their whole lives, their whole livelihoods,” Dascal said.

Fear of the consequences of shift is part of the hesitation to abandon conventional practices.

“It’s not something that happens within days or weeks or months, and it’s easier said than done,” said Bhadha. “But we do have years of experience and science and knowledge to tell us that it’s possible to improve soil quality and climate resistance and provide a much better ecosystem for the next generation.”

Farmers transitioning to regenerative systems face years of experimentation. Initially, yields may decline. New equipment may be required. Heat or moisture stress on cover crops, non-cash plants that protect soil between cash crop plantings, can make establishment tricky. Both can also enhance pest and disease pressure, making the move away from chemical inputs more stressful.

Chris Castro, executive vice president of Climate First Bank, which focuses on sustainability,  said the costs for a transition to regenerative practices ranges widely, from $50 to $1,000 per acre, depending on the operation and the changes required.

He said the investment is a long-term strategy for reducing risk. “Farmers are thinking about day in and day out, about pressures that they’re facing, the real world realities, regardless of who’s in the White House, of how to put food on the table for the American public,” he said. “They’re thinking about it pragmatically. Traditional farming is eroding our nutrients, eroding our ability to grow food. That’s asset devaluation.”

Castro, who previously managed grants and assistance programs at the U.S. Department of Energy, said the USDA Farmer First Regenerative Pilot Program, announced in December 2025, is a step in the right direction, creating ways farmers and ranchers can incorporate regenerative practices en route to reducing operational disruptions and financial losses. 

“It’s about making sure that you’re not devaluing the asset but you’re appreciating it,” he said.

The program is administered by the Natural Resources Conservation Service, a USDA agency created in 1935 to assist victims of dust storms that carried away topsoil and destroyed farm  land. Now, any farmer or rancher who wants to convert to regenerative agriculture can apply for a grant and technical assistance through local NRCS offices. 

The funding comes from existing USDA programs: $400 million from the Environmental Quality Incentives Program and $300 million from the Conservation Stewardship Program.

It’s not a grant. The Regenerative Pilot Program is an incentive to adopt a conservation plan that addresses “resource concerns,” such as soil erosion, unique to each farm or ranch. 

In Florida, 130 contracts are expected to be offered to qualified applicants to receive incentive payments of varying amounts up to $23.4 million, the state total for the first year of funding, if set outcomes are achieved.

Requirements are rolling out in real time. Government guidance says participating producers must prove soil and water meets NRCS standards, undergo two rounds of soil testing, commit to implementing techniques for at least five years and use one or more regenerative management practices from a list of 15, including mulching and cover crops. Gypsum, also known as calcium sulfate (which adds calcium and sulfur to displace sodium and help soil retain moisture), and/or carbon soil amendments (which increase the amount of carbon in soil to increase organic matter) will be allowed. 

Demand in Florida already exceeds funds. 

State Conservationist Juan Hernandez, who leads Florida NRCS, said in an email that both small-scale farms and large agribusinesses in the state, driven in part by climate challenges like heat stress, hurricanes and nutrient loss, are adopting practices that improve soil health, sequester carbon and benefit the environment. He referenced an AI-generated analysis that found “regenerative farming and soil health” to be a top trend in Florida agriculture, connected to an estimated two million acres and crops like citrus, peppers, strawberries and tomatoes. 

“If we get to see any kind of improvements to soil erosion, loss of soil organic matter, water quality, that’s good for Florida and that’s good for everyone in Florida,” said Amber Till, who administers financial assistance programs for Florida NRCS. 

Castro predicts these contracts will be used to leverage funding from the private sector. Winning a contract should inspire a lender to approve a loan. Success looks like more funding for more farms in the future. 

From a business standpoint, said Castro, a regenerative farm is efficient. 

A concern many have is whether the current administration and its reduced workforce can be as well. Paperwork and site visits require additional training and staff, and the pilot program contains no related funding.

Knowing Your Ecosystem

Farmers using regenerative systems say the benefits are tangible, but admit they were not easily won.

“Sometimes farming is so hard and discouraging,” said Austin Chandler, who owns and operates Soulsprout Farm in Eustis with his spouse, Kennedy Martin. “Sometimes we take a loss at the benefit of doing what we feel is right.” 

Right, to them, means nurturing healthy soil that does not deplete over time and offering nutrient-rich food to their community that they would eat themselves. Since their 2021 start, the couple, who work the land alone, has followed common regenerative standards of organic-first with a focus on improving soil health in their three-acre growing area. 

This spring, a flea beetle infestation damaged Soulsprout’s turnip crop, one of its most popular. 

Because they grow multiple crops—leafy greens, root vegetables, tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers and other recognizable produce on one field—the loss was bearable. 

“There are farmers who will be financially devastated by putting all their time and money into one crop, and I really feel for them,” said Chandler. “If we made all our money on turnips, we would have been crying our eyes out.”

Having other crops to rely on, he said, and “knowing that your ecosystem is eventually going to balance out, and beneficial insects are going to start attacking predatory insects,” helps them avoid discouragement. 

Regenerative agriculture is not a rejection of conventional farming systems. It’s a call back to the heart of farming. As Chandler puts it: Working in collaboration with your soil and your ecosystem, instead of constantly being at odds with your environment.

In Florida, burdened by the impact of relentless extreme weather, the question is not why take on more uncertainty and more cost in an already volatile system, but how to operate within conditions that are becoming harder to predict.

“It’s not that regenerative agriculture can reverse changes with climate or changes happening to the climate, but farms can stand firm when the climate does change,” said Bhadha. “If there are incentives in place that can help growers to do that, that would be great.”

In the meantime, recognition that dirt stuck between lettuce leaves and everywhere else matters is accelerating. The future of agriculture depends on it.