At a conference recently I heard someone say, “I’m a soil farmer.” I’ve heard this kind of thing before. Many cattle farmers claim to be “grass farmers” (or even soil carbon cowboys) rather than livestock producers. Soil is clearly part of the agriculture system, but is it really something that needs specific attention? And if so, what kind?

The answer to the first question is easy: yes. Maintaining healthy soil, which the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) defines as “having the capacity to function as a living system that sustains plant and animal productivity and health,” is critical to producing the food that we eat. Unlike many aspects of today’s food system, the importance of soil is not up for debate. Big companies, advocacy groups, farmers, and agronomists are in agreement about the value of healthy soil.

Yet despite this consensus, soil degradation- the opposite of soil health- is still a huge problem. Over the last 150 years, more than half of the earth’s topsoil has eroded. Degraded soil is an issue for a number of reasons. For example, it increases nutrient runoff into waterways which can harm fish species. Degraded soil also lacks the microbes needed to fight off harmful bacteria, often leading to further application of the very chemical inputs that caused the degradation in the first place.

And it’s not just an environmental problem. As soil health is lost, the land can no longer sustain crops. Initially, yields decline, which means profits drop. But this incentivizes the use of more chemicals, meaning costs rise. This is another vicious cycle that exacerbates over time if one does not address the core issue- the health of the soil. Eventually, land may become desertified, or completely unable to sustain agricultural activities. Improving soil health is key to global food security and economic development. Lack of nutrients in the soil is the primary reason that crop yields in Central America, parts of Africa, and Eastern Europe are the lowest in the world relative to their potential.

“The majority of the world’s soil resources are in only fair, poor or very poor condition…33 percent of land is moderately to highly degraded due to the erosion, salinization, compaction, acidification and chemical pollution of soils….Further loss of productive soils would severely damage food production and food security, amplify food-price volatility, and potentially plunge millions of people into hunger and poverty” -FAO 2015 Soil Health Report

Financially viable solutions that improve and sustain soil health are in high demand. This creates a huge opportunity for innovation. There are lots of different approaches, from farmers and extension services testing new practices, to agribusiness corporations searching for technological advancements. Some of the main approaches include:

• Inter-cropping and crop rotations
• Cover cropping
• Rotational grazing
• Soil conditioners and amendments that enhance microbial activity or add specific microbes intended to address a certain problem
• Direct seeding/ No-till
• Sensors to monitor localized soil conditions and make recommendations. These range in technical complexity, from satellite sensors and cloud-based algorithms to paper-based soil sensors.
• “Breeding for resistance,” or breeding plants that can call for pathogen-fighting microbes

Though many of the above technologies and practices are seeing widespread acceptance and adoption, there’s no silver bullet and we still have a long way to go. Why? Because soil health is particularly complicated. The complexities are both technical and societal:

• The soil microbiome is a web of interdependent organisms (i.e. microbes) that work with each other, depend on the local context, vary by plant species, and have relationships with each other the plant, and the pathogens they fight.
• Like in most natural systems, changes take a long time and are hard to see and measure.
• People fear the unknown, and adopting new ways of managing soil health requires a paradigm shift away from quick fixes with visible results and significant backing
• Growers might have to shift from year-to-year management to a long-term view of ecosystem health. Behavior changes are always hard to catalyze
• The agriculture system currently lacks financing mechanisms that take a long-term approach and enable profitable business models that can deliver large-scale solutions

Because of the complexity and the long timeframes, the public sector has a key role to play in accelerating solutions. This is already happening; for example, the USDA has launched a number of supporting initiatives, including a video series featuring real farmers implementing soil health practices. These efforts need to continue. In particular, as research into this area continues to increase, we need programs that help translate the research into practice.

The private sector, too, has a role to play. This is happening much slower, but I think that’s about to change. Private sector investment in agriculture is reaching unprecedented levels, yet there have been few huge successes. One issue has been the lack of financially viable business models: technologies have not been able to consistently deliver cost savings or profit increases to farmers, so farmers are reluctant to pay for them, and businesses can’t make money or attract investors.

Innovations that improve soil health will have a clear financial upside. Improving soil health will decrease input costs because the microbes in the soil eat up all the nutrients, so none are left for pathogens to eat and farmers won’t need as many chemical inputs. Healthier soil is also more efficient at using water, meaning lower irrigation costs. Improving soil health also improves yields: a plant growing in ideal conditions will grow bigger and produce more. So ultimately farmers will spend less, and make more. Entrepreneurs and investors should be salivating at this opportunity.

Soil degradation is a serious problem that, if unresolved, will affect everyone who eats. The importance of soil health is becoming a mainstream issue: the New York Times covered it, big agribusiness companies are looking for solutions, investors are deploying capital, and 2015 was the year of the soil. But we still have a long way to go to repair and sustain this key natural resource on which our livelihoods depend. The conversation has moved beyond alternative farmers and environmentalists, but now it’s time for widespread action. Bring on the entrepreneurs.