By Brent Kumfer | Owner, The Rejoicing Vine
Did you know the White River was once so clear that sunlight reflected off the white limestone pebbles at the bottom? The White River and other Indiana waterways are anything but clear today. That’s because across Indiana, our rivers and streams carry more than water. What we put on our lawns and fields become part of a much larger story—one that connects Indiana farmland to ecosystems hundreds of miles away.
Each year, excess nutrients from agricultural runoff end up in waterways. Waterways in the Midwest flow towards the Mississippi and eventually into the Gulf of Mexico. The massive runoffs from farms across the Midwest create a “dead zone” in the Gulf of Mexico of approximately 6,705 square miles devoid of marine life. That’s roughly the size of the state of New Jersey!
And if that’s not frightening enough, conventional agriculture can contribute to greenhouse gas emissions and loss of nutrient density in our foods.
But there’s good news, better ways of farming are taking root in fields across our state.
On our farm, we’ve came to see that agriculture isn’t just about what we harvest—it’s about what we restore. We call it ‘Cultivating Life’. A mindset that has reshaped how we approach everything, from what grows between our rows to how we care for the land after harvest.
This is the essence of regenerative agriculture: moving beyond sustaining what exists toward actively rebuilding soil health, ecosystems, and resilience. For those of us who call Indiana home, it’s an opportunity to strengthen not just our farms, but our water, our communities, and our future.
1. Clean Water: From Indiana Fields to the Gulf
Water quality is one of Indiana’s most urgent environmental challenges and agriculture sits at the center of it. Next time you drive through rural Indiana outside of the growing season take a second to observe the farm fields. For most you’ll see nothing but bare soil resulting from conventional farming practices like tillage. For our waterways bare soil is a disaster. When the heavy fall and spring rains land on bare soil much of it runs off, carrying with it the loose soil and the residual chemicals.
When excess nitrogen and phosphorus leave farm fields through runoff, they don’t just disappear. They travel from local waterways like the White River and Wabash River into the Mississippi River system, eventually reaching the Gulf of Mexico.
There, this nutrient pollution fuels massive algal blooms that deplete oxygen in the water, creating the Gulf of Mexico Hypoxic Zone.
The Evidence:
- The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration tracks this hypoxic zone annually, which can span thousands of square miles.
- The U.S. Geological Survey links nutrient runoff from Midwestern agriculture directly to its formation.
- The Environmental Protection Agency identifies nutrient pollution as one of America’s most widespread water quality problems.
Regenerative agriculture helps address this at the source. First, healthier soils result in healthier plants. Healthier plants require fewer (if any) chemical inputs like pesticides and fertilizers. For the inputs that are used, healthy soil act like a sponge, absorbing more rainfall, holding nutrients in place, and reducing the volume and speed of runoff.
More Evidence:
- The Rodale Institute Farming Systems Trial shows improved water infiltration and reduced runoff.
- The Nature Conservancy highlights soil health practices as critical to reducing nutrient loss across the Midwest.
- USDA data shows cover crops can significantly reduce nitrogen and phosphorus loss.
We’ve seen this shift firsthand. Our regeneratively farmed vineyard has required ZERO pesticides or chemical fertilizers to survive. When the heavy rains come, the covered soils with living roots can absorb it without runoff or erosion.
2. Carbon Sequestration: Farming as Climate Solution
Regenerative agriculture has another huge benefit: it can act as a storage of carbon. In fact, regenerative agriculture has been identified as a key climate mitigation strategy with the potential to significantly offset global greenhouse gas emissions.
Healthy soils are filled with organic carbon-based matter. For every 1% increase in organic matter an acre of soil holds ~6 tons more carbon. Adopting regenerative practices like cover cropping, reduced tillage, and keeping living roots in the soil year-round can not only reduce the impact on local waterways but it can also help draw carbon out of the atmosphere and store it underground.
The Evidence:
- The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change identifies soil carbon sequestration as a key climate mitigation strategy.
- The Rodale Institute reports that regenerative organic practices could significantly offset global emissions.
- The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service shows increasing soil organic matter improves carbon storage.
In our vineyard, the use of cover crops growing underneath the vines and prairie strips between the rows has helped to rebuild our soil health and increase our soil organic matter in just a few years.
3. Nutrient Density: Rethinking What Healthy Food Means
We often define better food by what’s not in it. Regenerative agriculture invites us to also consider what is in it. In conventional farming farmers focus on the chemical rather than biological composition of soils. They look at the “NPK” (Nitrogen, Phosphorus, & Potassium) content of soil and rely on chemical additions to fix any imbalances. This rudimentary approach misses the mark. The soil is the ‘gut’ of the plant. And just as dietary studies are showing it’s critical for our guts to have a healthy microbiome, it is critical for plant health to have a healthy living soil. And emerging research suggests that healthier plants grown in healthier soils may produce more nutrient-dense crops.
The Evidence:
- A 2022 study by David R. Montgomery and Anne Biklé found regeneratively grown crops contained higher levels of key vitamins and phytochemicals. These crops showed increased levels of polyphenols—important for both plant resilience and human health.
While this science is still evolving, it reinforces a simple idea: healthy soil grows healthier food.
4. Resilience: Preparing for Indiana’s Changing Climate
Indiana farmers are already experiencing more volatile weather from heavier rains, longer dry spells, and shifting growing conditions.
Regenerative systems are designed to handle that variability. That’s because soils rich in organic matter soak up more water during heavy rainfall, hold onto the water better during drought, and support stronger more resilient plants.
The Evidence:
- The US Department of Agriculture and Purdue University both emphasize soil health as key to climate resilience.
- Research consistently shows improved performance under weather stress in soils with higher organic matter.
Growing Forward
Regenerative agriculture is not a return to the past, it’s an evolution of farming grounded in both tradition and science.
On our farm, in just a few short years we have witnessed the transformation from a field into a living ecosystem filled with microbes, plants, pollinators, and people working together.
And while every farm’s approach looks different, the goal should be shared: to leave the land better than we found it.
Indiana has always been an agricultural leader. With regenerative practices, it has the opportunity to lead again, this time in restoring the systems that sustain us.
Let’s grow something greater than a harvest. Let’s grow a healthier Indiana.
A Role for Every Hoosier
Regenerative agriculture isn’t just a farming movement; it’s a community one.
Today, only a portion of Indiana farmland uses practices like cover crops or reduced tillage. Transitioning takes time, investment, and support.
That’s where consumers play a powerful role. What you value will ultimately drive what the average farmer values.
How You Can Take Action
Ask Questions
At farmers markets, wineries, and grocery stores, seek to understand how the food is grown. What sustainable or regenerative practices is the farmer using? Questions help the growers see what is important to their customers.
Support Farmers Doing the Work
Choose local producers investing in long-term environmental stewardship.
Support Advocacy Efforts
Consider donating to or volunteering for organizations like the Hoosier Environmental Council who are advocating for and advancing policies that protect Indiana’s resources.
Keep Learning
Explore resources from the Rodale Institute, USDA NRCS, Purdue Extension, NOAA, and The Nature Conservancy to go deeper.
About The Rejoicing Vine
On our farm in Indianapolis we strive to cultivate life. Both on our farm and in our tasting room.
The Rejoicing Vine is home to Indiana’s only regeneratively farmed vineyard. Throughout the vineyard cover crops, flowers, and prairie strips grow to increase biodiversity and protect and feed the soil. In the winery, we extend that same mindset rethinking how wine is served, turning to reusable stainless-steel kegs rather than glass bottles to eliminate waste.
We also produce, to our knowledge, Indiana’s only wine made from certified sustainable grapes, an effort to align what happens in the vineyard with what ends up in the glass.
It’s an ongoing process, but one that continues to reinforce a simple belief: how we grow and how we produce matter. Want to see regenerative agriculture in action? Visit our farm winery on the northwest side of Indianapolis. Want a more in-depth experience? Schedule a winery & vineyard tour and spend an hour diving into the world of sustainable wine production.
Categories: Sustainable Agriculture