Money will be divided between 45 projects
By Diego Flammini
Assistant Editor, North American Content
Farms.com
The United States Department of Agriculture announced an investment of $26 million to spur innovation within the agriculture sector.
The money will be shared by 45 projects. They focus on a variety of issues, including water quality, conservation finance and assistance to underserved customers.
"This investment will offer farmers, ranchers and forest landowners new ways to protect their natural resources and new revenue streams to keep their operations viable, building on the record amount of conservation work that has already been done under this Administration,” secretary of agriculture, Tom Vilsack, said in a release.
Projects include:
- $1 million for the National Corn Growers Association to develop a greenhouse gas insetting network that can serve as a model for corporations and other entities to encourage conservation adoption and achieve greenhouse gas reductions and water quality benefits.
- $944,715 for Iroquois Valley Farms to develop and offer Soil Restoration Notes, an investment vehicle that will be sold to investors.
- $992,012 for Louisiana State University to develop and improve fallow season cover crop strategies as a component of overall conservation programs for soybean, field corn, cotton and sugarcane.
- $400,912 for Practical Farmers of Iowa to test a new model for conservation adoption, hoping to increase the number of acres of small grains grown as a third crop in the corn and soybean rotation.