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USDA launches regenerative agriculture pilot program to help improve soil health and strengthen the food supply chain

The USDA has announced a $700 million regenerative agriculture pilot program to help farmers improve soil health and strengthen the food supply chain.

Ag Secretary Brooke Rollins says the initiative is designed by farmers for farmers. 

“Improving the health of our soil is critical not only for the future viability of farmland, but to the future success of American farmers,” she says. “We must protect our topsoil from unnecessary erosion and boost the microbiome of the soil.”

Aubrey J.D. Bettencourt, chief of NRCS, says the agency is using funding through the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) and the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) to fund the first year of the project.

“This program is designed to utilize practices that our farmers know and trust,” she says. “It grants them the credit for the voluntary action of change of practice on their farm that then can transition into the supply chain, into the marketplace, and directly back to the consumer.”

Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. says farmers are part of the solution to Make America Healthy Again.

“Some of these are fifth, sixth, and seventh generation farmers,” he says. “They’ve provided us models for how to do this and how to do it in a way that dramatically reduces inputs.” 

The program also includes the creation of the Chief’s Advisory Council and expands the public private partnership to help guide the department on future conservation projects. 

The USDA says its streamlined the application process for EQUIP and CSP, which now don’t have to be filed separately. Farmers and ranchers can apply through their local NRCS office.