In Illinois, Iowa and Indiana, 94% of crop production is dedicated to corn and soybeans. What would it take to change that — and why does it matter?
CAST and the Diverse Corn Belt Project co-presented a free public webinar on April 14, 2026, featuring the findings of Diversifying the Corn Belt: Policy Pathways for a Resilient Agricultural Future, a new policy brief based on three years of participatory research with 178 stakeholders and 725 farmers across the Corn Belt. The brief identifies 19 policy opportunities — ranked by feasibility and transformative potential — across federal crop insurance, Farm Bill conservation programs, post-harvest market infrastructure and institutional procurement.
The webinar was presented by co-first authors Lauren Asprooth, food systems scientist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and Brennan Radulski, postdoctoral researcher at the University of Vermont.
Download the full policy brief (open access): cast-science.org/publication/diversifying-the-corn-belt-policy-pathways-for-a-resilient-agricultural-future
Watch the recording:
