The Aporia · Ohio farmer turns erosion-hit 700-acre farm into an 8,000-acre model

Bill Kellogg transformed his erosion-prone 700-acre farm into an 8,000-acre operation using conservation methods. His approach includes grid soil testing, no-till and strip-till practices, precision nutrient management, cover crops, buffer strips, and subsurface drainage. Starting in 1999 with grid soil sampling, the farm now selectively uses cover crops and shallow tillage to manage costs while maintaining yields. The Kelloggs are also considering using chicken litter as a nutrient source due to rising phosphate prices. This article highlights how Kellogg adapted his farming practices over decades, turning conservation efforts into a profitable model.

Written by AI on 2026-09-20, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

Story summary

Bill Kellogg, a Ohio farmer from Hardin County, transformed his 700-acre farm into an 8,000-acre operation over several decades. Initially motivated by soil erosion issues, Kellogg adopted various conservation techniques to protect the land and enhance farming efficiency. These methods included grid soil testing, no-till and strip-till practices, precision nutrient management, cover crops, buffer strips, subsurface drainage, and pollinator habitat creation. The farm now includes about 60 acres dedicated solely to waterways for better erosion control. After the 2014 Toledo water crisis, the Kelloggs joined a Farm Bureau and Natural Resources Conservation Service demonstration project, gaining wider recognition for their conservation efforts. Today, with help from his son Shane, the farm continues to expand its sustainable practices, demonstrating that environmental stewardship can go hand in hand with agricultural productivity.

Written for “Farm Erosion Solutions Ohio” on 2026-11-02, grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.

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Conservation as a family legacy The Kelloggs’ conservation work gained a wider audience after they joined a Farm Bureau and Natural Resources Conservation Service demonstration project following the 2014 Toledo water crisis.

framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-09-20

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Ohio farmer turns erosion-hit 700-acre farm into an 8,000-acre model · assertive framing

For Bill Kellogg, conservation did not begin with a government program, a sustainability label or a push for recognition. asserted

conservation → begin → recognition

It began with gullies. asserted

It → begin → gullies

Watching water repeatedly carve through his family’s rolling farmland convinced him that the way the ground was being worked had to change. asserted

ground → watch → him

What followed was a decades-long effort to protect the soil while building a larger, more efficient and profitable farm. asserted

followed → follow → farm

According to a report by Farm Progress, Kellogg’s original 700-acre operation has expanded to about 8,000 acres, with 1,800 acres owned and the remainder rented. uncertain

remainder → accord → acres

Along the way, conservation evolved from grass waterways and water and sediment control basins into a much broader system. asserted

conservation → evolve → system

Today, the Hardin County farm uses grid soil testing, no-till and strip-till practices, precision nutrient management, cover crops, buffer strips, subsurface drainage, pollinator habitat and about 60 acres of waterways. asserted

farm → use → waterways

The shift toward precision agriculture accelerated when Bill’s son, Shane, became involved in the operation. asserted

son → accelerate → operation

Grid soil sampling began in 1999, giving the family a clearer picture of how nutrients were moving through their fields and how the soil responded to management decisions. asserted

soil → begin → decisions

Strip-till eventually became a particularly visible part of the farm’s approach. asserted

till → become → approach

Instead of broadcasting fertilizer across an entire field, the Kelloggs began banding nutrients where crops could access them more efficiently. uncertain

crops → broadcast → them

The approach has helped reduce fertilizer use while maintaining or improving yields, states the online report. asserted

report → help → yields

Adapting instead of following a formula The Kelloggs do not treat conservation as a one-size-fits-all system. asserted

size → adapt → system

Cover crops, for example, are used selectively, particularly on rolling ground where they can provide greater erosion protection. asserted

they → use → protection

Tillage generally remains shallow, rarely going beyond two inches except when drainage or leveling work requires deeper disturbance, and that flexibility extends to fertilizer decisions. asserted

flexibility → remain → decisions

With phosphate prices expected to rise above $900 per ton, the family is reconsidering chicken litter as a nutrient source, adds the Farm Progress report. asserted

report → expect → source

The farm used the material 15 to 20 years ago and is now examining whether bringing it back could make economic sense. uncertain

bringing → use → sense

A farm built through difficult times The Kellogg story is also one of persistence. asserted

story → build → persistence

He began farming at 14 after his father left agriculture to care for his ill wife. asserted

father → begin → wife

By his senior year of high school, Bill was managing 700 acres, much of it through relationships with older farmers in the community. asserted

Bill → manage → community

The farm survived the severe agricultural crisis of the early 1980s, when Bill faced foreclosure and sold possessions to keep the operation afloat. asserted

Bill → survive → operation

A combination of family help and a shrewd investment in payment-in-kind certificates helped him emerge from the debt crisis, states the report. asserted

report → help → crisis

Those experiences shaped a straightforward financial philosophy: profitability matters alongside stewardship. asserted

profitability → shape → stewardship

And that principle remains central as Shane manages the farm’s day-to-day operations and works to expand what his father built. asserted

father → remain → what

they → gain → crisis

The family later became involved with H2Ohio and has opened its farm to thousands of visitors, including students, officials and journalists. asserted

family → become → students

Their efforts recently earned the family the Ohio Conservation Farm Family Award. asserted

efforts → earn → Award

The farm now involves multiple generations, with Bill, Shane, Jacinta Burd and their families contributing to its future. asserted

Bill → involve → future

Ohio farmer turns erosion-hit 700-acre farm into an 8,000-acre model

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