Healthy Soil Grows Healthy Food—and Stronger Economies

Have you ever thought about the value of soil? It covers 30% of the earth’s surface. It supports all of our ecosystems, from farms and grazing land to rainforests and the vast northern taiga. It contains more carbon than the earth’s atmosphere and all its plant biomass combined. The amount of fresh water in soil that’s available to grow plants is 100 times greater than all the world’s lakes, rivers, and wetlands put together. Soil connects the lithosphere, atmosphere, hydrosphere, and biosphere. And 95% of the food we eat is dependent on it, making soil the single most important resource for agriculture to feed the world.