Society is at a crossroads with agriculture. It needs to decide if it’s going to punish farmers for doing what it considers to be sub-par work (even if that consideration is unfounded) or reward them for getting better and making improvements.

Such decisions are made daily in everyday life… like when we happily tip for good food or good service, or don’t, when we’re displeased. Maybe a miserly tip draws attention to a problem. But it doesn’t fix it.

The federal government thought a punitive approach was going to work with farmers a few years ago, when it became in vogue for countries to try out-doing each other and be an environmental model for the rest of the world.

Normally, farmers would support measures that might enhance exports, like a drive towards a cleaner environment.

But Ottawa’s approach was wrong. The government appeared more interested in pomp than pragmatism. It didn’t consider new measures from its own research arm and others that could help farmers be even better stewards than they are now. And it gave farmers no credit or rewards for conservation and sustainability measures that they were already doing – such as sequestering greenhouse gas emissions through careful pasture management and cropping practices.

Instead, without listening to them, impossible emission goals were thrown up. No carrot, no sugar, just do it.

What a mess. Ottawa has tried to make amends, but among farmers, it has never really recovered. Premiers old and new have used it as a prime example of Ottawa’s cold centrality and insensitivity.

So here’s another approach.

In Alberta, an insurance plan by the Agricultural Financial Services Corporation there is proposing to reward farmers who work to have high levels of organic matter in their soils.

It sounds odd for what’s basically an insurance organization to be so benevolent.

But this is not an approach meant to draw Canada congratulatory emails from international conservation organizations, even though it should. Rather, it’s a prime example of a win-win.

Soil with high organic matter – decaying plant matter, for example, rich in microbes and very much alive – has a superior soil structure that retains water. Rainfall that lands on it doesn’t run off into streams and rivers; instead, it filters down to plant roots where it can be retained and used. That makes the crop less prone to drought.

And all this results in fewer insurance claims. It’s a bit like rewarding good drivers with lower premiums for having no claims – give farmers lower premiums if they’ve taken measures to improve their soil organic matter and reduce potential harm from drought.

This is an easy concept to understand.

Maybe Ottawa could give it a try. Farmers have asked over and over to be recognized for sustainability measures they’ve already taken, like reducing soil tillage and managing pastures.

The public doesn’t understand that these are science-based, measurable approaches. Science, says the federal government, should drive decision making and legislation.

On the farm, it already is.