Event highlights cutting-edge research, precision agriculture, and the announcement of the first-ever Mid-Atlantic 4R Advocate team.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 19, 2026 (Lancaster, PA) - The Mid-Atlantic 4R Nutrient Stewardship Association held a successful 2026 4R Science Symposium on Monday, February 9, 2026. Over 70 trusted advisors and like-minded organizations joined Mid-Atlantic 4R in Lancaster Pennsylvania to learn more about practical science-based applications of 4R Nutrient Stewardship and hear directly from experts through research insights and real-world case studies highlighting how 4R farming practices are implemented on farms.
Mid-Atlantic 4R Advocate
During the Symposium, the Mid-Atlantic 4R team announced their first-ever 4R Advocate. For the 2026 year, David "Dave" Shriver with The Mill and Tom Linthicum with Seneca Ayr Farm in Montgomery County, Maryland will be recognized throughout the year for their 4R farming practices and team work.
During the fall, Mid-Atlantic 4R collected nominations for this award. For the first year, there were five very strong trusted advisors and farmers that truly represented 4R farming in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed. Each pair was interviewed and personal information redacted before submitting content to a small 4R committee. With the use of a rubric, the committee selected Tom and Dave to represent the Mid-Atlantic 4R Program.
Tom's family has been farming in Montgomery County since 1825. He focuses on growing corn, soybeans, and cover crops. In 2025, he achieved a .707 nitrogen use efficiency. Recently Tom has grown in 4R farming practices through the use of a Mid-Atlantic 4R Voucher with variable rate phosphorus, potassium, and lime following the use of a soil sensor to collect Electrical Conductivity. Tom and Dave also have different variable rate zones developed through yield data, for variable rate nitrogen at sidedress. This team is using multiple 4R nutrient strategies to manage primary nutrients, secondary nutrients, and micronutrients to match growth stage specific needs of his crop.
Dave Shriver is an agronomist and CCA with The Mill and has been working with Tom since 2019. This pair has built a strong 4R program that works efficiently! Mid-Atlantic 4R is looking forward to the year ahead with our 2026 4R Advocate.
Symposium
The day began with Erin Hardin with Coastal AgroBusiness and Chris "Haishi" Conway with AgriFocus LLC. Erin and Haishi had a very interactive session on variable rate technology and its relation to 4R farming. With a trusted advisor perspective, Erin and Haishi discussed how other retailers can use data-driven insights and current industry issues to strategize conversations to promote 4R practices and variable rate programs. The many questions asked by Precision Ag Service Providers, and others interested in the precision ag aspects of 4R Nutrient Management, reflected by the broader interest in using technology to increase yield and improve water quality. The opportunity to grow 4Rs through variable rate and precision agriculture is strong and opportunities are vast.
Our second presenter was unable to join us in-person but the content was still very relevant and valuable. Steven Mirsky with the United States Department of Agriculture, Agriculture Research Service joined via zoom to showcase his research on multi-use cover crops, nitrogen cycling, and opportunities for testing this technology locally. Through a Regional Conservation Partnership Program Grant, farmers and trusted advisors with Growmark FS and Willard Agri-Service, can test this new technology. Then a prescribed in-season sidedress can be completed with cost-share funds available. Learn more about this grant opportunity here.
After a snack and networking break, the group reconvened for a presentation on Manure Nutrients and the 4Rs with Eric Rosenbaum. Eric is the Senior Agronomist and owner of Rosetree Consulting LLC while serving on the Mid-Atlantic 4R Board as a board member. In addition, Eric serves as the co-executive director of the Pennsylvania 4R Alliance. Eric provided case studies to help understand how manure fits into a whole-farm nutrient management plan with the use of 4R farming. Eric presented farm-level information on the nutrient availability and mineralization of poultry litter and the economic benefits of low disturbance manure injection for improving the use efficiency of liquid manure. Eric is working on a grant with Sustainable Chesapeake for Manure Injection and has cost-share opportunities to help farmers and commercial manure haulers offset injection costs. Funding is also available for farm advisors to overlay advanced nitrogen management on injected acres, if you are interested in learning more about this opportunity learn more by contacting the Mid-Atlantic 4R Team at midatlantic4R@gmail.com.
The group then enjoyed a hot lunch, catered by Mission BBQ. To wrap up the 4R Science Symposium, a 4R panel shared "Why We Offer 4R Incentive Programs and The Impact of These Programs." Jenell McHenry, Mid-Atlantic 4R Nutrient Stewardship Association Executive Director shared about the Mid-Atlantic 4R Voucher Program that allows trusted advisors to assist their customers with taking the next step in a 4R practice with a $1,000 planning voucher. Kristin Fisher, Applied Agriculturalist Scientist with The Nature Conservancy, highlighted the exciting opportunities associated with The Nature Conservancy's Conservation Innovation Grant Voucher with a Nitrogen Use Efficiency outcome payment. This program allows farmers and their advisers to seek new, innovative ways to improve the efficiency of grain production. Rather than being paid to implement specific practices, farmers are incentivized based on the level of efficiency they are able to achieve. Amanda Bunn, Applied Agricultural Conservationist with The Nature Conservancy, highlighted the organization's Regional Conservation Partnership Program grant supporting sub-field cover crop nitrogen crediting. She shared that unique value of this project is twofold. First, because multispecies cover crops are less common in Pennsylvania, the project provides farmers with financial support to adopt them as well as to develop basic nutrient management plans. Second, farmers can use cover crop nitrogen credits to adjust in-season corn nitrogen rates with minimal risk. If participation results in reduced income, the program compensates farmers through a foregone income payment. The technology will become publicly available, so this project offers a limited-time opportunity to try virtually risk-free sub-field cover crop N crediting, you can learn more online here. Furthermore, Dave Shriver with The Mill and Jamie Kimbles with Willard Agri-Service shared how they work to increase 4R adoption to their customers and the ease of utilizing the 4R incentive programs to help their farmers. In addition, Matt Houser, Senior Social Scientist with The Nature Conservancy, provided insight on the social impact of these incentive programs and the benefit they provide to trusted advisors with his experience interviewing farmers who participated in these programs.
The event was made possible by a 2024 National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Innovative Nutrient and Sediment Reduction Grant funded through NRCS and EPA. Grant match includes Growmark FS, Mosaic, The Mill, The Nature Conservancy, Nutrien Ag Solutions, and The Campbell Foundation. Event sponsorship is provided by The Fertilizer Institute, Corteva, ETS Soil Warrior, Mosaic, and Yara. Thank you to all those who contributed to a successful in-person and interactive event!
Galen Martin with Breakthrough Advertising spent the day with Mid-Atlantic 4R to record the presentations. These recordings will be available on Mid-Atlantic's YouTube page in the near future. You can find the YouTube channel here.
Learn more about Mid-Atlantic 4R online at midatlantic.cjpshell.com/.