BUILDING FARM STABILITY

This young farmer uses regenerative practices and diversification to set up his farm for the future.

- Alex Gray

Casey McCausland was not raised in agriculture, but when his grandfather offered him a partnership, he found himself deeply invested in regenerative practices.

McCausland, 39, farms across 1,300 acres around the central Illinois community of Havana, growing corn, soybeans, wheat, and an assortment of cover crops, as well as custom farming. He largely farms by himself, with assistance from his grandfather and father during harvest. McCausland and his wife, Tara, have four children.

McCausland graduated from high school in 2003 and started college, intending to become a music teacher. After determining it wasn’t the route for him, he enlisted in the Marine Corps Security Forces in 2005 as an infantry rifleman. While home on leave from a tour in Afghanistan in 2009, his grandfather, Vernon McCausland, 91, offered Casey a partnership on his farm.