What exactly makes soil “high quality”?

A single teaspoon of healthy soil contains more microorganisms than there are people on Earth. And 95% of the world’s food depends on this living ecosystem, yet soil is deteriorating at an alarming rate. A United Nations report found that 90% of the world’s land surface could be degraded by 2050.

So what does it actually mean for soil to be healthy? At its core, high quality soil can retain water, support microbial life, and anchor plants through all kinds of weather. When these functions work together, crops grow more reliably and farms remain productive year after year. But many farms today struggle to maintain that balance: nutrients are depleted with every harvest, water becomes harder to manage as climate extremes intensify, and restoring soil health requires deliberate long-term care.

This is where regenerative agriculture comes in. Regenerative practices can help enhance soil rather than deplete it. That includes growing cover crops to enrich the soil between seasons or reducing tillage to disturb the soil as little as possible to preserve its structure. Companies like Nestlé see these practices as an opportunity to improve the resiliency of the land while making meaningful progress toward its sustainability ambitions. Because ingredients account for the majority of Nestlé’s carbon footprint, supporting farmers in adopting regenerative agriculture practices can have a big impact. For example, some dairy farmers supplying milk for Nestlé’s Carnation brand are repurposing manure as fertilizer to support the soil. And at Gerber, many fruit and vegetable growers plant cover crops that can protect soil from erosion and help rebuild organic matter.

“It’s through these approaches that we’ll be able to serve and delight consumers for generations to come,” said Molly Fogarty, SVP, Sustainability at Nestlé U.S.

For Chris Falak, on Gerber’s agriculture team, the work is personal. “I can think back to riding on a tractor with my grandfather when I was 10, 11 or 12 years old, and he said, ‘We’ve got to put back what this land gave to us.’ Our Gerber growers are doing that on a much larger scale,” Falak said.

Nearly all of the fruit and vegetable farmers who supply Gerber have already adopted regenerative practices.¹ What’s more, Nestlé plans for 50% of its key ingredients globally to come from farmers using these methods by 2030. While Gerber represents only part of Nestlé’s overall ingredient supply in the U.S., the high adoption rate shows how regenerative practices can scale when growers have support and partnership along the way.

As climate impacts intensify, protecting soil quality is essential to protecting future harvests. The thriving microscopic life found in a single teaspoon of healthy soil is a sign of the strength that soil can offer when it is well cared for. Regenerative agriculture can help restore the resilience that soil is capable of providing and protect the land where ingredients grow.