Organic Farming Pioneer Rodale Institute Expands Its Mission into Regenerative Health

The motto of this dynamic Pennsylvania-based nonprofit is healthy soil = healthy food = healthy people.

Good health is a top priority these days and more consumers than ever are turning to organic food to stay healthy. Rodale Institute, widely recognized as one of the founders of the modern organic movement, has been helping it grow through research, farmer training, and consumer education, for 70 years. KnoWEwell talked with Chief Impact Officer of Rodale Institute, Jeff Tkach, about their research and expansion of their legacy.

Since 1947, Rodale Institute has been driven by the premise of its founder, J. I. Rodale that “Healthy Soil = Healthy Food = Healthy People” and has taken the lead in developing a more responsible way of modern farming by conducting research into the cultivation of healthy, living soils. Their research systematically shows that regenerative organic farming practices and natural systems free of synthetic substances can help reverse climate change and create a healthier future for people, animals, and our planet. “We see ourselves as a human health organization, not an agricultural organization,” says Jeff Tkach. “We use agriculture as a tool to heal people and the planet.”

From humble beginnings on a run-down farm in Emmaus, Pennsylvania, Rodale Institute has grown to become a global leader in regenerative organic agriculture. Their research has provided scientific evidence that organic farming has the ability to renew, restore, and regenerate the health of damaged, toxic soil while mitigating the effects of climate change.

“We use agriculture as a tool to heal people and the planet.”

Rodale Institute is now looking to the future with plans to create the Regenerative Health Institute on its headquarters, a 333-acre certified organic farm in Kutztown, Pennsylvania. The new facility will more deeply explore the links between farming and human health while serving as a global hub of shared education. According to Jeff Moyer, CEO of Rodale Institute, research projects will take place on location, teaching not only farmers but medical professionals and consumers how powerful the connection is between soil, food, and health.

“Ultimately, our personal health is linked to the health of the soil,” says Moyer. “There will be scientific research at the Regenerative Health Institute and partnerships around the world documenting our discoveries.”

The need is great for the expanded research proposed by Rodale Institute. Organic is more than a label. It’s working and living in harmony with nature. During the last century, the rise of chemical-based agriculture has dramatically changed how food is produced. In efforts to keep crop yields high and labor costs low, today’s conventionally farmed foods are saturated with synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, and herbicides. As a result, the health of the soil declines while toxic residues infiltrate food and water supplies. Continuing on this path could lead to further degradation of our food system.

“The current mode of farming is systemically broken, and farmers need to move in a healthier direction,” said Tkach. “Rodale Institute works to empower farmers and consumers through education, offering courses and on-location guidance. Rodale Institute helps conventional farmers take their knowledge of agriculture and combine it with organic practices. We also educate consumers.”

It is estimated that 63% of food consumed today is refined and processed while 60% of adults are on at least one medication. According to Tkach, the predominant model of healthcare is one of “disease care,” which is a retroactive approach that has created ever-escalating costs. At the same time, there are just 60 years of farmable topsoil left under current practices, and the future of the climate is increasingly unsteady.

The goal of the Regenerative Health Institute is to connect health professionals with farmers and increase understanding of how food can not only heal disease but also prevent it.

Rodale Institute has invested in decades of research, which has resulted in groundbreaking findings over the years. “The science coming out of respected organizations is showing that pesticides and herbicides are known carcinogens,” said Tkach. “They are wreaking havoc on our immune systems. They are ubiquitous in our air and in the water we drink. Farmers are applying them at such dramatic rates that they are no longer able to control where those chemicals land. They are leaching into our groundwater. They're killing the life in the soil and causing major soil erosion. Ultimately, they're causing imbalances in nature of mass proportion.”

Rodale Institute founder J.I. Rodale recognized the problems with conventional farming over 70 years ago. An entrepreneur from New York City, Rodale relocated to Emmaus, Pennsylvania, in the 1930s. Inspired by the agriculturist Sir Albert Howard, who wrote passionately about the importance of healthy soil and natural farming methods like composting and cover cropping, Rodale vowed to grow as much of his family’s food as possible. After eating home-grown food for an extended period, his own health drastically improved.

By the 1940s, Rodale had decided to create a model for organic methods. He and his wife, Anna, bought an old 63-acre farm, which became the site of his first experiments in organic agriculture. Rodale’s vision was to research the cultivation of healthy, living soils in order to promote a better, natural, and more responsible way of modern farming. By 1947, Rodale had founded the Soil and Health Foundation, which later became Rodale Institute.

In 1954 Rodale said, “Organics is not a fad.” A visionary ahead of his time, he knew that farming practices focused on cultivating healthy soil would lead to healthier food, healthier people, and a healthier planet. The current site of Rodale Institute’s headquarters in Kutztown, Pennsylvania was purchased in the 1970s.

A visionary ahead of his time, J. I. Rodale knew that farming practices focused on cultivating healthy soil would lead to healthier food, healthier people, and a healthier planet.

Over the decades, the organization has made numerous breakthroughs. Rodale Institute’s Farming Systems Trial, which began in 1981, is the longest-running side-by-side comparison of organic and conventional grain cropping systems in North America. Over 40 years of data collection have scientifically proven that organic agriculture performs as well as, if not better than, conventional agriculture. Research on-site at Rodale Institute demonstrates how the power of organic farming can grow nutrient-dense, healthy food that is preventing and reversing disease. They are training tomorrow’s organic farmers, and partnering with schools, hospitals, and community organizations to educate consumers.

“We're beginning to see a pretty dramatic shift in the behavior of farmers as they slowly adopt regenerative organic practices due to consumer demand,” said Tkach. “We’re now working with farmers all over the country and holding their hands on this path towards transitioning to organic. It's a very exciting time.”

Rodale Institute began the Vegetable Systems Trial in 2015. It is one of the first studies in the world to look at the nutritional quality of food based on how it's produced and how food can be used as medicine. Rodale Institute continues to expand and is currently in seven locations across four states. They are working in diverse regions of the country, including California, Iowa, and Georgia, where they are helping farmers adopt organic practices.

Rodale Institute’s vast range of ongoing studies includes addressing water pollution,  ensuring the success of organic farmers, protecting and enhancing the environment, and revitalizing food. One of their biggest challenges is examining the extent to which climate change threatens the planet.  

Rodale Institute has released two major reports in recent months. One whitepaper, “Regenerative Organic Agriculture and the Soil Carbon Solution,” demonstrates how the global switch to a regenerative food system reduces chemical exposure, improves soil health, and provides ample food. Using carbon sequestration to capture and store carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, Rodale Institute has shown that proper farm management has the ability to restore biodiversity and regenerate soil systems. Further, in the whitepaper, Rodale Institute analyzed substantial data and concluded that a global switch to regenerative crop and pasture systems could draw down more than 100% of annual CO² emissions, thus mitigating climate change. This paper builds upon claims first made by Rodale Institute in the widely read 2014 whitepaper "Regenerative Organic Agriculture and Climate Change: A Down-to-Earth Solution to Global Warming." 

Another recent publication, “The Power of the Plate: The Case for Regenerative Organic Agriculture in Improving Human Health,” outlines clear steps forward to begin improving the health of people around the world. The two studies underscore the future direction of Rodale Institute, highlighting the significant successes they are having in training farmers and advancing regenerative organic systems.

“Most of us who aren't purchasing organic food at the grocery store are spending more money on healthcare,” says Tkach. “In 1960, people were spending three times as much on food as on healthcare. Today, we're spending double the amount of money on healthcare as we do on food. So, we are a sick nation.”

Rodale Institute is working to rebalance the status quo whereby corporations dominate the agriculture industry. The organization sees access to healthy food as a basic human right and is creating programs that make organic food accessible to everyone, especially the most vulnerable populations. “Rodale Institute is working very hard to break down barriers where there is food injustice and a lack of food sovereignty,” says Tkach.

“We're very passionate about making organic food available, because everyone has the right to organic food,” says Tkach. “Most consumers are disconnected from the problem and don’t think about where their food is coming from. We need to reconnect with and educate consumers. I think that consumer awareness and consumer engagement are the two biggest challenges we face.”

Rodale Institute sees access to healthy food as a basic human right and is creating programs that make organic food accessible to everyone.

Tkach believes that people are becoming more enlightened about the food they eat. In 2020, as a result of the pandemic, 22 million new gardens were planted in the US, according to the National Gardening Association. With people spending more time at home, they have reevaluated their priorities and are focusing more on their health and the quality of the food they eat. Rodale Institute encourages everyone to grow a garden, if possible, and offers webinars, workshops, and trainings

for anyone interested in doing so.  

“It’s important for consumers to become part of the solution by voting with their dollars and by engaging with agriculture and food production,” says Tkach. “Everyone can grow something, whether it's a basil plant on the windowsill or a full garden in the backyard. It's about the experience of engaging with agriculture that changes you.”

Tkach also encourages consumers to get to know local farmers and buy directly from them. Rodale Institute supports Community Supported Agriculture (CSA)— constellations of local farms, food, and people who are united in an agrarian relationship for the health of people and the planet. Rodale Institute stresses, however, that if there is not a direct relationship between a person and a farm, it is not a true CSA.

During the height of the pandemic, when the food supply chain ruptured and many grocery stores ran out of stock, there was a significant increase in direct farm-to-consumer sales. “Why does it take a pandemic to make that change?” asks Tkach. “We have these incredible regenerative organic farmers right in our own communities that oftentimes don't have access to mainstream markets. You're likely to find someone within a five-mile radius of your home growing and producing food in harmony with nature, following organic and regenerative principles.”

Rodale Institute is striving to educate not only consumers, but healthcare professionals and farmers. As an organization that is always looking forward, Rodale Institute has high hopes for their newest endeavor, the Regenerative Health Institute. The goal is to connect health professionals with farmers and increase understanding of how food can not only heal disease but also prevent it. Rodale Institute is gathering funds to create the facility, which will include a rooftop farm, educational space, indoor and outdoor dining areas, commercial kitchen and cooking facilities, a digital conference space, office space, and interactive exhibits.

“The Regenerative Health Institute will be the first brick and mortar facility in the world to house a conversation between medical doctors and farmers.”

“I think one of the exciting things about the Regenerative Health Institute is that we’re going to simply raise this soil up, slide a building underneath it, and farm right on top of the building,” said Moyer. “Our doors are wide open to not only philanthropic help, but also shared vision and input into the way our center is going to look and function.”

For seven decades, Rodale Institute has been at the forefront of the organic movement, advocating for healthy soil to heal people and the planet. Looking to the future, Rodale Institute is widening its focus to include healthcare in the paradigm. The Regenerative Health Institute will be a global hub for doctors and farmers, connecting the healthcare of the future with the agriculture of the future.

“The Regenerative Health Institute will be the first brick and mortar facility in the world to house a conversation between medical doctors and farmers,” says Tkach. “There is an awakening happening as we enter into a new era of healthcare.”

“There’s no more exciting place to be than that which works with nature and makes people healthy,” says Moyer.