“That farmland is being permanently lost,” said Tom Bullock, executive director for the Citizens Utility Board of Ohio, a consumer advocacy group. In contrast, building solar on leased land “doesn’t destroy the ability to make it arable land once again.”
Calls to protect farmland from solar also tend not to acknowledge the fact that a significant amount of active farmland is, in fact, being used to produce energy already — just in a far less efficient manner.
Ohio farmers harvested corn from more than 3.1 million acres last year, Department of Agriculture numbers show. About 40% of that is used to make ethanol, most of which is blended into gasoline. Corn ethanol biofuels require about 30 times the land per unit of energy as solar, according to a 2025 study by Cornell University researchers.
The increasing pushback against solar on farmland comes as Ohio and other states face growing electricity demands that are pushing energy bills ever higher.
“With energy demand rising at a historically fast rate, Ohio needs every electron it can get, as soon as possible,” said Andrew Linhares, Midwest state affairs director for SEIA, noting that solar and storage accounted for 91% of new capacity added in the U.S. for the first three months this year.
“We need all forms of energy, but gas plants take five to seven years to build, and we are still years away from bringing new nuclear online,” Linhares said. “Solar-plus-storage is available now.”
From a local perspective, these statewide concerns may not “move the needle,” Bullock noted, “because a local township is worried about their township, and not the macro numbers.”
Even so, better data can help local officials make better decisions as they scrutinize different development proposals.
“Land use planning, not necessarily at a federal or even regional level, but at a local level … has got to be critical,” said Dale Arnold, director of energy, utility, and local government policy for the Ohio Farm Bureau Federation, which advocates for farmers.
That’s because officials must juggle a slew of other priorities alongside agricultural needs, from boosting economic development and tax revenue to ensuring adequate housing and the protection of natural areas.
But, many advocates point out, solar and farming do not need to be at odds.
A farmer in Knox County teamed up on a sheep-grazing agreement with the Frasier Solar project, for example. And pilot studies at a Madison County development aim to develop best practices for growing forage or other crops at scale amid rows of panels.
“Achieving a clean energy future does not have to be a choice between agriculture and energy production,” said Karin Nordstrom, an attorney with advocacy group the Ohio Environmental Council.
