Soil influences human health in a variety of ways, with human health being linked to the health of the soil. Historically, emphasis has been placed on the negative impacts that soils have on human health, including exposures to toxins and pathogenic organisms or the problems created by growing crops in nutrient-deficient soils. However, there are a number of positive ways that soils enhance human health, from food production and nutrient supply to the supply of medications and enhancement of the immune system. It is increasingly recognized that the soil is an ecosystem with a myriad of interconnected parts, each influencing the other, and when all necessary parts are present and functioning i.e. the soil is healthy, human health also benefits. Despite the advances that have been made, there are still many areas that need additional investigation.

We do not have a good understanding of how chemical mixtures in the environment influence human health and chemical mixtures in soil are the rule, not the exception. We also have sparse information on how most chemicals react within the chemically and biologically active soil ecosystem, and what those reactions mean for human health.

There is a need to better integrate soil ecology and agronomic crop production with human health, food/nutrition science, and genetics to enhance bacterial and fungal sequencing capabilities, met genomics, and the subsequent analysis and interpretation. While considerable work has focused on soil microbiology, the microorganisms have received much less attention regarding links to human health and need considerable attention.

Soil health has significant potential to address challenges faced by farmers and ranchers as they combat the effects of erosion of topsoil and loss of soil organic matter. Sustaining and improving soil health can make the land more resilient to future challenges including weather conditions like extreme rainfall, temperature fluctuations and drought. These benefits have led to increased adoption of practices that improve soil health among farming and ranching communities, soil managers, scientists, agricultural Extension specialists and other groups that work with soil.

We support research that provides a better understanding of what soil health is, how it is measured and how to manage and optimize the sustainable delivery of the ecosystem services that soils provide. Soil health has been identified as one of AMF’s key strategic scientific priorities. By creating the Soil Health Challenge Area, we recognize that soil science research and technology transfer needs better coordination, evaluation and implementation to advance soil conservation and management throughout the country. Collectively, our soil health efforts are designed to increase public-and private-sector interest in and advance the scientific understanding of soil resources and to transfer this knowledge to land managers, farmers and ranchers to advance stewardship of these important resources.

Soil health has significant potential to address challenges faced by farmers and ranchers as they combat the effects of erosion of topsoil and loss of soil organic matter. Sustaining and improving soil health can make the land more resilient to future challenges including weather conditions like extreme rainfall, temperature fluctuations and drought. These benefits have led to increased adoption of practices that improve soil health among farming and ranching communities, soil managers, scientists, agricultural Extension specialists and other groups that work with soil.

We support research that provides a better understanding of what soil health is, how it is measured and how to manage and optimize the sustainable delivery of the ecosystem services that soils provide. Soil health has been identified as one of AMF’s key strategic scientific priorities. By creating the Soil Health Challenge Area, we recognize that soil science research and technology transfer needs better coordination, evaluation and implementation to advance soil conservation and management throughout the country. Collectively, our soil health efforts are designed to increase public-and private-sector interest in and advance the scientific understanding of soil resources and to transfer this knowledge to land managers, farmers and ranchers to advance stewardship of these important resources.