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 The USDA has awarded two
specific grants this year that will potentially help farmers not
just in Illinois, but across the country. Both of these grants are
part of the Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities program.
The USDA describes this program as one that is "committed to
supporting a diverse range of farmers, ranchers, and private forest
landowners through Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities. This
effort will expand markets for America’s climate-smart commodities,
leverage the greenhouse gas benefits of climate-smart commodity
production, and provide direct, meaningful benefits to production
agriculture, including for small and underserved producers."
An important aspect of this program is that the grants found under
it are not for individual farmers. Instead, there is a specific list
of requirements for potential applicants.
According to the USDA
website, applicants for grants like these are:
"County, city or township governments; special district governments;
state governments; small businesses; for-profit organizations other
than small businesses; federally recognized Native American Tribal
governments; Native American Tribal organizations other than
federally recognized Tribal governments; nonprofits that have a
501(c)(3); nonprofits that do not have a 501(c)(3); private
institutions of higher education; and public and state-controlled
institutions of higher education."
Additionally, small-scale
agricultural producers and forest landowners may be part of larger
grant applications in conjunction with these groups.
One such grant, for $95 million, was awarded to Farmers for Soil
Health (FSH). According to their website, FSH is a multi-state
organization that works "with the Soy Checkoff, Pork Checkoff,
National Corn Growers Association and American Soybean Association
to create a farmer-led cover crop program that advances the use of
soil health practices, meets sustainability goals and improves
farmer profitability."
They work with these groups to help farmers "in implementing and
maintaining cover crops through farmer outreach, education, and
communication, financial assistance [and] cost-share opportunities
for farmers, technical assistance for farmers, identifying and
addressing barriers to participation, and [finding] financial
incentives." Overall, the grant will fund cost sharing programs and
technical assistance for cover crops to "8,000 - 10,000 farmers on
1.44 million acres of corn and soybeans."
Cover crops can help suppress soil diseases and pests, or work like
a mulch. Cover crops can also provide material for grazing livestock
or haying and can provide food and habitat for wildlife, beneficial
insects, and pollinators. Rye and winter wheat are common examples
of cover crops.
It can take time to learn how to best utilize cover crops. FSH hopes
to help farmers understand the learning curve, and will use the
grant money to work with farmers for the next three years to help
them transition to utilizing cover crops, as well as to facilitate
the marketing of sustainably produced corn and soybeans.
The second of these grants, for $70 million, was awarded to Field to
Market. This organization works with farmers and other key partners
throughout the supply chain to develop sustainable business
practices. They work with agribusinesses; food, beverage, restaurant
and retail; conservation groups; universities; and various other
public sector partners.
According to the organization's press release announcing the grant
award, "a portion of the awarded funds will specifically support
Black and Native producers, assisting historically underserved
producers in adopting climate-smart practices. Other major project
partners include PepsiCo, Farmers Business Network, EDF,
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Archer Daniels Midland, the
Illinois Corn Growers Association, Precision Conservation
Management, Nutrien Ag Solutions, Growers Edge, Mondelēz, Michigan
State University, Coop Elevator and the Cornell Atkinson Center for
Sustainability."
So how will these grants
affect farmers in Logan County? The answer to that question is a
little complicated. Groups like FSH and Field to Market are
organizations that reach across the entire agricultural supply
chain. They work with a wide range of groups and businesses involved
in agricultural work. From a purely technical standpoint, individual
farmers do not receive money from these types of grants, but they
can still benefit.
As an example, one of the partners working with Field to Market is
the Illinois Corn Growers Association. The Illinois Corn Growers
Association distributes information, educates the public on corn
production, and offers resources and education for corn growers.
Many of these groups and organizations working with Field to Market
and FSH function the same way. So while individuals won't see a
direct deposit of some kind, they will still benefit from the
resources that are made available.
For Logan County farmers, this means that they will have access to
resources, training, and vast networks of agricultural producers at
their disposal. Access to such networks is especially helpful for
underserved communities, or for those who are relatively new to
farming, or who want to turn higher profits for their efforts. Logan
County farmers need to stay connected to these networks of people
and businesses, and look for those helping hands that receive these
kinds of grants.
This means that individual farmers may not see extra grant money,
but they also don't have to work alone. These grants also represent
efforts to adapt to a changing climate and leave the environment a
better place, and that requires everyone to step up, regardless of
how big or small their operation.
[Derek Hurley]
https://farmersforsoilhealth.com/
https://fieldtomarket.org/field-to-market-awarded-up-to-70-million-in-usda-funding-for-climate-smart-agriculture-innovative-finance-initiatives/
https://www.unitedsoybean.org/hopper/farmers-for-soil-health-awarded-95-million-usda-climate-smart-ag-grant/
https://www.usda.gov/climate-solutions/climate-smart-commodities
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