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Balanced Reporting. Trusted Insights.
Friday, May 20, 2022
The Biden administration is looking to farmers to help alleviate global food shortfalls by planting winter wheat this fall on ground that’s coming out of the Conservation Reserve Program, but much of the acreage lies in states that are suffering from prolonged drought.
In this week’s Agri-Pulse Newsmakers episode, featured guests include USDA Farm Service Agency Administrator Zach Ducheneaux, along with Mary Kay Thatcher, Syngenta; Bobby Frederick, NGFA; and Brad Doyle, president of the American Soybean Association.
The years-long drive by the European Union to promote agricultural conservation and sustainability at the cost of production has been thrown off the rails as the Russian invasion of Ukraine threatens food security in countries that need access to affordable grains.
The Agriculture Department is shifting the way it promotes the Conservation Reserve Program, placing greater emphasis on allowing farmers to use enrolled land for haying and grazing, according to recent comments by Farm Service Agency Administrator Zach Ducheneaux.
Signup trends for the general enrollment in USDA’s Conservation Reserve Program over the last few years are showing higher acceptance rates, but some fear that’s due to the department lowering the environmental benefits index score, which determines eligibility requirements for the program.
Over 2.5 million out of 3.9 million acres submitted have been accepted by USDA in this year’s Grassland Conservation Reserve Program enrollment, with additional priority zones for elk migratory paths and the Dust Bowl region.
The Agriculture Department is accepting 2.8 million acres into the land-idling Conservation Reserve Program, well under the 4 million acres the Biden administration was aiming for as part of its effort to use farmers to help reduce U.S. greenhouse gas emissions.
USDA announced plans Tuesday to provide additional coronavirus relief to farmers, biofuel producers and food companies and to expand the Clean Lakes, Estuaries and Rivers conservation initiative, known as CLEAR30, to the entire country.
USDA's Farm Service Agency recently announced a multiyear $10 million initiative aimed at quantifying the benefits of Conservation Reserve Program contracts.
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack denied Thursday that President Joe Biden’s goal of conserving 30% of the nation’s land by 2030 is a “land grab” but is instead intended to protect “private, working lands" through voluntary programs.
