Acres U.S.A. Magazine: History, Ownership, Coverage and Editors
Profile updated November 2026
Acres U.S.A. magazine describes itself as North America's oldest publisher focused on production-scale organic and regenerative farming. Its founder's motto, that to be economical agriculture must be ecological, has guided it since 1971, years before organic food reached supermarket shelves. This page covers the magazine's history, ownership, current content and editors.
| Founded | 1971 |
|---|---|
| Founder | Charles Walters Jr., economist and former National Farmers Organization editor |
| Owner | Questor (formerly Swift), since 2016 |
| Mailing address | P.O. Box 1690, Greeley, Colorado |
| Frequency | Monthly; the magazine says it has never missed a month |
| Other products | Books, the Eco-Ag Conference, online courses, webinars and podcasts |
| Official website | AcresUSA.com |
History of Acres U.S.A.
Charles Walters Jr. grew up poor in Ness County, Kansas, at the tail end of the Dust Bowl, trained as an economist and edited publications for the National Farmers Organization. Frustrated with NFO politics and shaped by Rachel Carson's Silent Spring, he started his own paper. As he told readers for the 25th anniversary, he did not have the money to buy a paper, so he started one.
Acres U.S.A. brought William Albrecht's soil research, Carey Reams' observations and many other pioneers of what Walters called eco-agriculture to a farm audience the U.S. Department of Agriculture considered statistically insignificant. Walters wrote or co-wrote more than a dozen books while editing the magazine, and the company built a book list of more than 100 titles and an annual conference that dates to the 1970s.
Walters later handed the business to his son Fred, who published it from Austin, Texas, and Charles contributed essays until his death in January 2009. His papers are held at Iowa State University. In 2016 Acres U.S.A. was purchased by Swift Corporation, now Questor, and the company celebrated 50 unbroken years of monthly issues with a special December 2021 edition.
Acres U.S.A. Today
Acres U.S.A. publishes a monthly print and digital magazine, runs the Eco-Ag Conference and Healthy Soil Summit events, sells books through its bookstore and produces online courses, webinars and the Tractor Time podcast.
Its audience has moved from the fringe to the mainstream as regenerative agriculture has gained traction with large growers and food companies, and the magazine now positions itself as a guide for farms transitioning ecological systems at scale.
What Acres U.S.A. Is Publishing Now
Soil biology and crop health
Articles explain soil microbiology, plant sap analysis, foliar nutrition and cover crops, often from consultants and researchers who speak at the Eco-Ag Conference.
Grazing and livestock
Holistic grazing, animal health without heavy chemical inputs and integrating livestock into crop systems get regular space.
Opinion and the vault
The View From the Country editor's column, opinion pieces on pesticides and policy, and From the Vault reprints of Walters' own interviews connect readers to the magazine's roots.
Acres U.S.A. Editors and Staff
Acres U.S.A.'s editors explained their vision for the magazine in a published letter to readers. Current editorial leaders include:
- Paul Meyer - Editor
- John Kempf - Executive Editor; founder of Advancing Eco Agriculture
- Charles Walters Jr. - Founder and longtime editor (1926-2009)
- Fred Walters - Former editor-publisher
Meyer is an Army veteran of 20 years with degrees in business, German and nuclear engineering who homesteads in southern Michigan; Kempf grew up on a fruit and vegetable farm in northeastern Ohio. Pitches go to editor@acresusa.com.
Who Reads Acres U.S.A.
Readers are commercial organic and regenerative farmers, ranchers and market gardeners. USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service now promotes many of the same soil health principles, living roots, minimal disturbance, cover and diversity, that Acres U.S.A. was preaching in the 1970s.
Regenerative growers have heard every joke about compost tea and dancing with earthworms, and most of them laugh first. If you want more where that came from, farm.FM mixes farm satire with farm humor about both the organic and conventional camps, plus ranch humor for the grazing crowd. The farm jokes are equal-opportunity, which is probably the most ecological approach.
farm.FM, the nation's first satirical farm site, also runs Tractor Tunes, a country music lineup for farmers. For a sample of the writing, try the archive of one of its staff humorists.
Acres U.S.A. Sources and Agriculture Authority Links
- Acres U.S.A.: Our History - the company's own account of Walters and the magazine.
- Wikipedia: Charles Walters Jr. - biography of the founder.
- Iowa State University: Charles Walters papers - the archival collection of Walters' research and publications.
- USDA NRCS: Healthy Soils for organic farmers - federal soil health guidance aligned with eco-agriculture.
- ATTRA (NCAT): Census of Agriculture insight - sustainable-agriculture analysis of the 2022 farm census.
Acres U.S.A. FAQ
Who founded Acres U.S.A.?
Economist and journalist Charles Walters Jr. founded Acres U.S.A. in 1971.
Who owns Acres U.S.A. now?
Acres U.S.A. was bought in 2016 by Swift Corporation, now called Questor.
Who edits Acres U.S.A.?
Paul Meyer is the editor and John Kempf is executive editor.
What is the Eco-Ag Conference?
It is Acres U.S.A.'s annual conference and trade show on ecological and regenerative agriculture, held each December.
Half a century after Walters started it on a shoestring, Acres U.S.A. magazine is no longer a voice in the wilderness. It is the reference shelf for farmers proving that ecological farming can pay.