Building a regenerative food system requires innovation in farming, inputs and services,  and supply chain development, as well as in the funding models that support them. This kind of innovation is one of the underlying themes of the 2020 Regenerative Food Systems Investment Forum. So, what better place to start the program than with a case study of the innovative farming practices that serve as the foundation for a resilient, prosperous, and impactful food system.

Introducing Brendon Rockey of Rockey Farms in Center, Colorado. He will kick-off our 2020 program by showing us how a shift in the way we think and farm can bring both ecological and economic vitality back to farming with his presentation “Building Ecosystem and Financial Resilience with Biotic Farming.”

Brendon is a third generation farmer who raises specialty potatoes and quinoa among fields of manure, all cultivated in a living environment. He chooses to nurture life through diverse, biotic inputs like companion crops, livestock, cover crops, and flowering strips instead of synthetic fertilizers, herbicides, fungicides and insecticides.

His 500-acre, irrigated farming system sustains yields, has greater water efficiency, and supports a flourishing ecosystem, creating a healthy habitat for life in the soil. The end result is healthy plants and insects, livestock, and humans.

Rockey Farms was awarded the 2014 National Potato Council Environmental Stewardship Award and was named Colorado Association of Conservation Districts Farming Division Conservationist of the Year in 2011. Brendon is the recipient of numerous individual honors for his innovative ideas and dedication to education. Learn more about Rockey Farms here and don’t miss your chance to glean insight from his experience. Register now!