Karl Plume

CHICAGO, (Reuters) – The United States plans to increase its cover crop plantation to 30,000,000 acres by 2030 as part of a Department of Agriculture (USDA), conservation program that was launched Monday.

Natural Resources Conservation Service, (NRCS), will be spending $38 Million to assist farmers in 11 states with their crop planting. These efforts can improve soil health and limit erosion. They also capture and store carbon.

Through a partnership, the United Soybean Board is investing in the National Corn Growers Association and National Pork Board. This investment represents the Biden administration’s latest farm-level efforts to tackle climate change.

In recent years, the number of cover crops has been increasing rapidly as large agricultural corporations have introduced carbon farming programs which pay farmers for more eco-friendly practices.

The Environmental Quality Incentives Program Cover Crop Initiative was announced by USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack at the American Farm Bureau Federation’s annual convention held in Atlanta.

In 2017, 15.4 million acres of crop cover were recorded by the USDA Census of Agriculture. This represents a tiny fraction of all agriculture-related acreage.

Rob Myers is the director of the Center for Regenerative Agriculture at University of Missouri. He estimates that plantings could reach 22 million acres by 2021.

The program will offer incentives to farmers and ranchers from Arkansas, California and Colorado as well as Georgia, Iowa and Mississippi. This is a USDA initiative that USDA hopes to grow in the future.