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Making climate smart ag profitable

The former CEO of the National Corn Growers Association says farmers don’t have to choose between profitability and sustainability.

Jon Doggett, who spent 35 years representing agriculture in Washington, D.C., says climate smart ag practices have an impact on profitability.

“No farmer wants to see that fertilizer go into the Gulf of Mexico.”  He says, “It doesn’t do that farmer any good to raise the crop. So, making sure that we use fertilizer better and more efficiently, you know there’s some things right there that improve the bottom line.”

He tells Brownfield the Inflation Reduction Act’s $20 billion investment into USDA conservation programs is a unique opportunity.

“Anybody who ever worked on ag policy in Washington, DC knows that their membership wanted programs that were incentive based and voluntary when it comes to conservation.”  He says, “This is it. We are putting a lot of money into these programs.”

Doggett says incentivized conservation is even more important in a down ag economy.

“It’s an investment, and particularly in these times when prices are down, it allows farmers and ranchers to take that extra little bit of risk, if you can go ahead and mitigate it.”  He says, “And at the end of the day produce something that benefits a whole lot of folks.”

He says farmers can work with their local USDA office to access conservation programs currently available.

AUDIO: John Doggett