An on-farm study of 54 representative Wisconsin dairy farms was conducted to evaluate the influence of biophysical and socioeconomic factors on overall feed, fertilizer, and manure nutrient use. This report validates 1) how well data on cow diets, feed analyses, and milk production reflected established feed-milk-manure relationships; and 2) how well farmer-recorded data on manure land application reflected literature values of manure N and P excretion, collection, and loss. Calculated feed N and P use efficiencies (18 to 33% and 18 to 35%, respectively) fell within ranges expected for dairy farms. This suggested that our on-farm methods of data collection provided reliable information on relationships among feed N and P intake, secretions in milk, and excretion in manure. On stanchion farms, there were no differences between farmer estimates (kg/farm) of manure P collected (1,140) and land-applied (1,210) and what would be calculated from the literature (1,340). On freestall farms, there were no differences in amounts (kg/farm) of manure P collected (2,889), land-applied (2,350), or literature estimates (2,675). Manure P applications (kg/ha) to tilled cropland would be similar using either farmer estimates of manure collected and land-applied, or literature estimates. The data provided a snapshot of Wisconsin industry practices, as well as information on the range of feed and manure management practices on individual dairy farms. Improvements to data collection methods would require increased skill and training of both farmers and those responsible for assisting farmers in on-farm data collection and analyses.

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Local food has become the rising star of the sustainable agriculture movement, in part because of the energy efficiencies thought to be gained when food travels shorter distances. In this essay I critique four key assumptions that underlie this connection between local foods and energy. I then describe two competing conclusions implied by the critique. On the one hand, local food systems may need a more extensive and integrated transportation infrastructure to achieve sustainability. On the other hand, the production, transportation, and consumption of local foods are fundamentally as reliant on fossil fuels as are long distance foods. A more holistic approach to energy use in the food system is needed to determine which particular sociotechnical factors optimize energetic sustainability.

The trajectory of the public discourse on agriculture in the twentieth century presents an interesting pattern: shortly after World War II, the manner in which farming and farmers were discussed underwent a profound shift. This rhetorical change is revealed by comparing the current debate on farmland preservation with a tradition of agricultural discourse that came before, known as ''agrarianism.'' While agrarian writers conceived of farming as a rewarding life, a public good, and a source of moral virtue, current writers on farmland preservation speak of farming almost entirely in utilitarian terms describing its productive capacity and its economic returns. Proponents of farmland preservation use essentially the same underlying framework as critics of preservation: an ''economic utilitarian'' paradigm that purports to eschew normative values and evaluate land use decisions based on economic criteria only. I argue that, despite their good intentions, farmland preservationists are doomed to piecemeal victories at best, because their arguments, which rely on a utilitarian justification and disregard the agrarian ethic, are inadequate. Without expanding its focus beyond farmland to encompass farming and farmers, the movement risks losing both integrity and effectiveness.

Nutrient management plans for livestock operations should account for rates and timing of manure application to cropland, as well as how manure is integrated with other nutrient sources. Little is known, however, about actual nutrient management behavior of farmers, and what changes may be needed for farmers to adhere to nutrient management regulations. Detailed records were kept on fertilizer, manure, and legume N and P applications on 33 representative Wisconsin dairy farms during the period October 2003 through September 2004. Average available N applications ranged from 118 to 200 kg ha 21 of which 40% was derived from fertilizer, 30% from manure and 30% from previous legume. On a regional basis, the following percentages of corn (Zea mays L.) area fell within available N application categories of 0, 1 to 80, 81 to 160, 161 to 240 and .240 kg ha 21 , respectively: in the Northeast (NE) region, ,1, 26, 33, 21, and 19% of the total corn area surveyed (504 ha); in the South-Central (SC) region, ,1, 39, 41, 14, and 5% of the corn area (576 ha); and in the Southwest (SW) region, 0, 31, 45, 14, and 10% of the corn area (180 ha). Average available P applications ranged from 16 to 18 kg ha 21 , of which 65% came from manure and 35% from fertilizer. On a regional basis, the following percentages of surveyed cropland area fell within available P application categories of 0