What if the key to healthier food, stronger crops, and a more sustainable planet lies just beneath our feet? Soil is like a plant’s digestive system: healthy soil hosts microbes (bacteria, fungi) that decompose organic matter into nutrients plants can absorb. When soil is biologically rich, plants become more resilient: they grow stronger, resist pests and disease better, and yield higher-quality crops. 

With some biological know-how, farmers can learn to actively manage soil chemistry and biology (pH, nutrient ratios, microbial communities) to steer outcomes. This means deterring pests, attracting beneficial insects, and stimulating healthy crop growth, all with less reliance on costly chemical inputs.

When Equal Exchange Vice President Lynsey Miller gathered with coffee farmers from around Latin America at the Farmer Exchange in Marcala, Honduras, she completely evolved her appreciation of soil. The agronomists at COMSA highlighted the importance of healthy soil in maintaining ecological balance, supporting farmer livelihoods, and fostering resilient agricultural systems in the face of environmental challenges. And, they taught hands-on how to use the natural environment to manage the soil more effectively. In her article, The Soil Whisperers, Lynsey explains how three “ah-ha’s” garnered from these workshops changed her foundational understanding of soil.