28 minute read
Cotton’s Agenda
Gary Adams
Seeing Is Believing
After a two-year hiatus due to COVID-19, the National Cotton Council has resumed its Producer Information Exchange (P.I.E.) program — a very valuable educational initiative.
How is the P.I.E. program conducted?
■ During the program’s 30-year plus existence, the NCC’s Member Services staff, in conjunction with local producer interest organizations, has coordinated the P.I.E. program’s tours and participant selection. Priority is given to selecting participants who have demonstrated a desire to improve their farming operations. This year featured two tours and was the first time that producers from two Cotton Belt regions toured together in another region. In late August, Mid-South and Southeast producers visited Texas’ Lubbock and Lower Rio Grande Valley regions while Western and Southwest producers traveled to North Carolina a week later. The P.I.E. tours now are made possible by BASF Agricultural Solutions through a grant to The Cotton Foundation.
Inside his barn, Lloyd Arthur, a Ralls, Texas producer, briefs Mid-South and Southeast producers on Texas High Plains’ water issues.
What benefits are offered?
■ The P.I.E. program has a specific goal of helping U.S. cotton producers maximize production efficiency and improve yields and fiber quality by 1) gaining new perspectives in such fundamental practices as land preparation, planting, fertilization, insect/weed control, irrigation and harvesting; and 2) observing diverse farming practices and the unique ways in which other resourceful producers have adopted new and existing technology. These objectives are more important than ever as new technology continues to accelerate at a rapid pace. However, appropriate adaptation of these tools and techniques to individual farming operations is a must considering today’s challenges producers face that range from higher crop input costs and adverse weather to weed resistance and seed cotton contamination prevention.
P.I.E. participants, though, get a unique educational opportunity to not only see innovative farming practices firsthand but ask questions about those practices face-to-face with their peers. In past tours, for example, Mid-South producer participants implemented new irrigation practices to improve efficiency and water conservation after visiting the Texas High Plains. Some Southeast region producer participants adopted weed resistance strategies after seeing Mid-South farms.
Another valuable program benefit is the sharing of information among the P.I.E. participants within their own Cotton Belt region as they travel together during a tour. Comparing notes with the tour hosts and their fellow travel companions often results in the participants determining what may work or not work in their operation. That interaction continues after a tour with many of the participants and hosts making lifelong friendships and periodically calling each other to get feedback on some new technology, farming practice or new production challenge.
After this year’s two P.I.E. tours, more than 1,200 U.S. cotton producers now have been exposed to innovative production practices in Cotton Belt regions different than their own. I encourage our cotton producers to consider participating in a P.I.E. tour. Involvement is as easy as expressing an interest. Contact your local cotton producer organization or your local NCC Member Service representative.
The Deltapine® brand’s New Product Evaluator (NPE) Program is celebrating its 15th season this year with NPE growers evaluating a diverse lineup of genetics and insect protection traits for the Class of ’23 cotton variety candidates.
Since its inception in 2008, the Deltapine NPE Program has become an industry standard for involving cotton growers in pre-commercial cotton variety evaluation and commercialization and has helped keep the Deltapine brand the No. 1 planted cotton brand on the market. The 15th season of the Deltapine NPE Program marks a milestone in helping raise yield potential and improving production across the Cotton Belt.
PERFORMANCE-PROVEN
Beginning in 2017, DP 1646 B2XF started a run as the topplanted product in the U.S., according to the USDA varieties planted reports, due to the step up it brought in yield and ber quality potential. The Deltapine Classes of ’20, ’21 and ’22, however, brought signi cant improvements over DP 1646 B2XF to the market. In addition, the Classes of ’21 and ’22 launched Deltapine Bollgard® 3 ThryvOn™ with XtendFlex® Technology cotton varieties.
GROWER-PROVEN
“The NPE Program has put growers at the table, allowing us to evaluate and identify cotton varieties that t our tough, dryland acre, as well as the highly productive irrigated acre,” said Ralph Kellermeier, NPE grower in the Texas Southern Rolling Plains. “We’re looking for consistent performance in tough conditions on many of our elds, and this program has helped us nd the right varieties for those acres.”
Since the rst Deltapine Class of ’09 cotton varieties launched featuring the cotton variety, DP 0912 B2RF — which offered signi cantly improved yield, ber quality and growth management to the market — each subsequent Deltapine class of cotton varieties has raised the bar of what growers expect in the type of genetics and pest protection traits.
“With the NPE Program, we have managed to switch to improved biotech traits in cotton without suffering a yield drag, and when we switch to a new trait, the yield potential is stable and even improves on our farm,” said Johnny Grif n, NPE grower in North Carolina.
Having over 200 NPE growers from Virginia to California evaluating allows the Deltapine brand cotton team to identify ideal genetics to bring to market for speci c growing regions in a Cotton Belt-wide program. Growers across all regions are currently adopting new genetics at a fast pace. Class of ’20 performance by DP 2012 B3XF, DP 2020 B3XF and DP 2038 B3XF equaled DP 1646 B2XF performance, according to Beltwide data collected by Bayer, but offered improved ber quality potential and products with resistance to bacterial blight and verticillium wilt.
100
Yield Difference (lb/acre) 80
60
40
20
0
-20
Upper Southeast
Lower Southeast
Upper Midsouth
Lower Midsouth South Texas
DP 2012 B3XF DP 2020 B3XF DP 2038 B3XF Central Texas
The Class of ’21 featured the cotton varieties DP 2115 B3XF and DP 2127 B3XF, and both demonstrated improved performance potential over the Class of ’20.
200
150
100
50
0
Upper Southeast
Lower Southeast
Upper Midsouth
Lower Midsouth South Texas Central Texas
DP 2115 B3XF DP 2127 B3XF
The Class of ’22 features the cotton variety DP 2239 B3XF and offers more consistent-performing products.
OBSERVATION DP 2239 B3XF DP 1646 B3XF Difference N Comparisons
LINT YIELD 1,312 1,280 32 110
LINT PERCENT 42.92
FIBER LENGTH (IN.)
1.21
MICRONAIRE 4.35
FIBER STRENGTH (G/TEX) UNIFORMITY (%)
29.53
83.20 42.49
1.23
4.24
29.83
83.32 0.43
-0.02
0.11
0.30
0.12 108
85
85
85
84 Based on performance data, growers in most areas should be able to select Deltapine Bollgard® 3 ThryvOn™ Cotton with XtendFlex® Technology varieties with similar yield potential to current top Deltapine commercial products.
DP 2131 B3TXF & DP 2211 B3TXF VS. DELTAPINE CHECKS
DRYTOUGH VARIETY (DP 2044 B3XF) VS. DP 1820 B3XF IN WEST TEXAS REGION
) Lint Yield Means (lb/acre 1610
1600
1590
1580
1570
1560
1550
1540
DP 2131 B3TXF DP 2211 B3TXF
B3TXF variety Deltapine B2XF / B3XF checks
Source: 2019 to 2021 Bayer fi eld trials; Midsouth and Southeast U.S. Deltapine Checks: DP 1646 B2XF, DP 2012 B3XF, DP 2020 B3XF, DP 2038 B3XF, DP 2115 B3XF, DP 2127 B3XF
The Deltapine DryTough™ Dryland Cotton Variety lineup, as well as other Deltapine products that t the Texas markets, has shown stable yield potential in the varying growing environments of this region.
60
50
Lint Yield Advantage (lb/acre) 40
30
20
10
0
Yield Env. < 1173 lb/acre Yield Env. > 1173 lb/acre
DryTough Advantage DP 1820 B3XF Advantage
Source: All commercial Bayer and external fi eld trials 2019 to 2021; West Texas, Oklahoma
Bayer is a member of Excellence Through Stewardship® (ETS). Bayer products are commercialized in accordance with ETS Product Launch Stewardship Guidance, and in compliance with Bayer’s Policy for Commercialization of Biotechnology-Derived Plant Products in Commodity Crops. Commercialized products have been approved for import into key export markets with functioning regulatory systems. Any crop or material produced from this product can only be exported to, or used, processed or sold in, countries where all necessary regulatory approvals have been granted. It is a violation of national and international law to move materials containing biotech traits across boundaries into nations where import is not permitted. Growers should talk to their grain handler or product purchaser to confi rm their buying position for this product. Excellence Through Stewardship® is a registered trademark of Excellence Through Stewardship. To learn availability of this product in your area, contact your local sales representative. Commercialization is dependent on multiple factors, including successful conclusion of the regulatory process. The information presented herein is provided for educational purposes only and is not and shall not be construed as an offer to sell. ALWAYS READ AND FOLLOW PESTICIDE LABEL DIRECTIONS. It is a violation of federal and state law to use any pesticide product other than in accordance with its labeling. NOT ALL formulations of dicamba, glyphosate or glufosinate are approved for in-crop use with products with XtendFlex® Technology. ONLY USE FORMULATIONS THAT ARE SPECIFICALLY LABELED FOR SUCH USES AND APPROVED FOR SUCH USE IN THE STATE OF APPLICATION. Contact the U.S. EPA and your state pesticide regulatory agency with any questions about the approval status of dicamba herbicide products for in-crop use with products with XtendFlex® Technology. Bt products may not yet be registered in all states. Check with your seed brand representative for the registration status in your state. Performance may vary, from location to location and from year to year, as local growing, soil and weather conditions may vary. Growers should evaluate data from multiple locations and years whenever possible and should consider the impacts of these conditions on the grower’s fi elds. Roundup Ready® Flex Technology contains genes that confer tolerance to glyphosate. Products with XtendFlex® Technology contains genes that confer tolerance to glyphosate, glufosinate and dicamba. Glyphosate will kill crops that are not tolerant to glyphosate. Glufosinate will kill crops that are not tolerant to glufosinate. Dicamba will kill crops that are not tolerant to dicamba. Contact your seed brand dealer or refer to the Bayer Technology Use Guide for recommended weed control programs. Insect control technology provided by Vip3A is utilized under license from Syngenta Crop Protection AG. LibertyLink® and the Water Droplet Design® are registered trademark of BASF Corporation. Bayer, Bayer Cross, Bollgard II®, Bollgard®, Deltapine®, DryTough™, Respect the Refuge and Cotton Design®, Roundup Ready 2 Xtend®, Roundup Ready®, ThryvOn™ and XtendFlex® are trademarks of Bayer Group. ©2022 Bayer Group. All Rights Reserved.
From le to right: Bill Peele, consultant for Tetterton Family Farms, pictured with Derick, Hope, Mollie and Greyson Tetterton, Elaine and Gary Respess
A North Carolina Cotton Family
Bringing Cotton Back To Eastern Carolina’s Landscape
BY CASSIDY NEMEC
ASSOCIATE EDITOR
In 1940, Gary Respess’ grandfather purchased some land that would become a legacy for generations to come.
Respess, a farmer, husband, father and grandfather, resides in Pantego, North Carolina. He farmed for decades in this small-town part of Beaufort County. He married his wife, Elaine, and raised three daughters.
Carolina Cotton History
When the boll weevil hit North Carolina in the 1920s, the cotton crop was decimated.
“This county was the largest cotton-growing county in the state, and it went to zero with the boll weevil,” Respess said.
Respess recounted how he’d come across the deed for the 1940-purchased property. His grandfather bought the original orchard and farm for $8,000. They paid it off in 10 years.
“Farming — it’s always been part of us. I was raised right here. Daddy and Mama all lived right over here,” he said.
Once the Boll Weevil Eradication Program made strides in the area, along with chemical and technological innovations, Respess began cotton farming in 1995.
He said they grew his first cotton with BXN and hoped for Roundup Ready cotton coming down the pipeline.
It was not long after this, in 1996, when Respess joined with several others to form an LLC and build the prominent cotton gin in the area.
There was once a small gin right down the road that ginned about 10 to 12 bales a day. At the gin today, they try to gin between 700 to 800 bales in a 24-hour shift.
The Next Chapter
One of his daughters, Hope, married Derick Tetterton in 1996. From there, the rest was history.
“The father of three girls finally got a son who wanted to farm,” Hope laughed.
Before joining the family business, Derick originally had a trucking business and hauled grain for many, including Respess.
After growing BXN cotton for two years, Respess became one of the first growers in the county and area at large to grow Roundup Ready cotton in 1997. In 1998, Derick officially started working with Respess on the farm and quickly became an instrumental player.
“I used to laugh and say the kids were raised going to see their daddy on the sprayer or the picker because it seemed he was always on there,” Hope said.
A significant change came in 2009 when the transition was made from a module-type picker to a round bale one. This helped with labor as it did not require nearly as many people to operate effectively.
“The way the equipment is set up is a whole lot better, and it just does a better job,” Respess added.
Over the years, they incorporated more tools to further their operation. These include variable-rate seeding, GPS, precision land leveling and Climate FieldView. All contribute to the farm’s continued success and improvement.
“The less fuel you burn, the more money you can put in your pocket if you can get the same results,” Tetterton said. “We’re still learning, too.”
In 2013, Respess retired from farming full time, passing the torch onto Derick and Hope, who formed DHT Farms, later becoming Tetterton Family Farms.
The Cotton Crop
Respess commented on their experience growing cotton throughout the years.
“It’s like every crop — it comes and goes,” he said. “What we always liked about cotton was how it was a forgiving crop. You can lose it in a day and have it come back not long after that.”
He recounted a time when they had virtually lost a cotton crop around July 1 one year. He said it came back and still made 800 to 900 lbs. “It had time to recover.”
GARY RESPESS, Pantego, North Carolina
Derick said last year was the best year they had for cotton on the farm, and this year is looking to be close to that as well, pending any hurricanes later in the season. “That’s our killer with cotton; it’s that first part of September. As long as they stay away, we should be pretty good,” he said.
Resistant palmer amaranth and ragweed are the two main weeds the Tettertons work to keep under control. “Rotating corn more — with the chemistry you can use there — helps,” Derick said.
In following up on good rotation practices, it was mentioned that rotating with cotton had a good effect for other crops on the farm as well. “We used to have a lot of cyst nematode problems in the soybeans, and cotton used as that rotation for two or three years just knocked them out,” Bill Peele, TFF’s consultant, commented.
The Farm Today
Today, the farm operates as Tetterton Family Farms and consists of 3,200 acres of owned and leased farmland — 1,600 acres of soybeans and roughly 800 acres of both cotton and corn make up the operation. All the cotton is dryland on a mixture of sandy and black dirt, and this year, is all Deltapine cotton.
As far as the crew goes, the operation consists of the Tettertons and Kenneth Van Staalduinen. Kenneth has been part of the farm for more than 40 years now, Respess said. “We are very fortunate to have him.”
“When dad retired, we were very thankful Kenneth wanted to continue right on with us. He’s been part of the farm forever,” Hope said.
Hope is the bookkeeper, parts runner, cook and anything else needed as far as the farm is concerned.
Greyson and Mollie Tetterton, Derick and Hope’s children, also have key roles.
Greyson is in his first full year on the farm — spending lots of time in the sprayer and picker — after working part-time in the summers and spending four years in the Marine Corps. Mollie assists Hope in helping the farm remain afloat. “When I’m home, I either bring lunch or get the call to bring them from farm to farm.”
The Industry And Inspiration
The Tettertons are heavily involved in the agricultural industry as a whole and use their close-knit family farm as fuel to push them forward each day.
Derick is the Beaufort County representative for the Blackland Farm Managers Association and serves as secretary for the Pantego Creek Drainage District. Hope is also the secretary for the Blackland Farm Managers Association.
On the farm, “weather is always the main challenge,” Derick said. Hope added input costs and supply issues don’t help either.
Both Derick and Hope relayed their major success as being able to keep farming year after year. Through the good and bad years, they just continue forward.
As for the inspiration to keep going every day, Hope answered quickly. “Aside from Jesus, family is it,” she said.
“There’s good and bad to every job that you have; that’s just life. There’s no other thing we’d rather do.”
Derick and Hope Tetterton watching as Greyson and Mollie Tetterton check cotton.
Drought Drops U.S. Cotton Harvest To Lowest Level Since 19th Century
BY MARY HIGHTOWER
The United States is expected to harvest its lowest number of cotton acres since the 19th century, according to an estimate from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
“USDA projected this year’s harvested acres at 7.13 million,” said Scott Stiles, Extension economist for the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture. “That would be the lowest since 1868.”
Stiles said USDA’s Aug. 12 report projected that about 43% of U.S. planted cotton acres are expected to be abandoned this year, “largely due to the extreme drought conditions in the southwest region, which includes Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas.”
Texas was particularly hard hit by drought this year.
“Texas is projected to abandon 69% of its cotton acreage this year,” Stiles said. “Texas’ planted acreage was 7.1 million. Texas farmers are expected to harvest just 2.2 million, the lowest since 1879.”
Cotton Balance Sheet
Stiles said that ahead of each monthly USDA report, Reuters surveys a group of industry analysts.
“The lowest pre-report estimate for production was 14 million bales. The actual number came in at 12.57 million,” he said. “This was a huge 2.93-million-bale drop from the July production estimate of 15.5 million. Lower production resulted from a reduced U.S. average yield estimate and a 1.4-million-acre reduction in harvested acres.”
Given the lower production estimate, USDA reduced its outlook for 2022 exports and domestic mill use by 2.2 million bales. The key metric of ending stocks was reduced 600,000 bales in August to a record low 1.8 million bales.
“These are absolutely stunning adjustments in the U.S. cotton balance sheet,” Stiles said.
The Aug. 12 report sent cotton futures up the daily limit of 4 cents, with the December 2022 contract closing at just under $1.09.
The daily trading limit was expanded to 5 cents in Monday’s trading. Within minutes of the open Sunday night, the December contract traded the 5-cent limit, reaching $1.1359. USDA currently forecasts a record season average farm price of 97 cents per pound for the 2022 crop.
Estimates For Arkansas
USDA projected Arkansas’ state average yield to be the second highest on record at 1,195 pounds per acre. Arkansas set a record high last year, with a state average yield of 1,248 pounds per acre. That beat the previous record of 1,185 pounds per acre set in 2019.
Stiles said the National Agricultural Statistics Service will conduct its regular in-field sampling for its September production estimate.
Bill Robertson, Extension cotton agronomist for the Division of Agriculture, said NASS was estimating 500,000 acres of cotton in Arkansas, but “we have 600,000 acres based on boll weevil eradication measurements with lots of new growers and cotton on less-than-optimum ground. This will impact our yield average.”
Difference Makers
Irrigation management during this season’s high temperatures will make the biggest difference for growers.
“Those who started irrigation on time have a good crop. Those who started late cut their effective bloom period short with an early cutout. This will impact our yield average,” he said.
“Cutout,” in the parlance of cotton production, is the point in the plant’s growth during which it won’t support the production of additional bolls.
“An almost ideal September will be needed for the plants to fill and mature bolls needed to obtain the yields and quality we have been accustomed to producing,” Robertson said.
Cotton ending stocks from USDA/National Agricultural Statistics Service numbers.
SCOTT STILES, Extension economist, University of Arkansas
Mary Hightower is chief communications officer for the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture.
U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol
A Conversation With Louisiana Cotton Consultant Dr. Rogers Leonard
The working relationship between cotton farmers and their consultants is based, in large part, on mutual respect and trust.
Dr. Rogers Leonard, who operates Integrated Crop Consulting LLC in St. Joseph, Louisiana, said, “It’s a very professional relationship from the standpoint that consultants provide technical services in the form of production and pest management recommendations.
“But I will temper that by saying it’s professional, but there is a lot of personal relationship building as well. An example is that many times when you want to relay information, you stop by the farmer’s home, so you have a chance to meet their family. And to further that, many of the successful cotton producers have consultants who have been with them for many years.”
After considering the synergy that emanates from this business/personal relationship between cotton farmers and their consultants, it makes sense that consultants can now assist their farmers in enrolling in the U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol.
For those not familiar with the initiative, here is some background information about the U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol:
Launched in 2020, the Trust Protocol’s mission is to bring quantifiable and verifiable goals and measurement to the key sustainability metrics of U.S. cotton production with a vision where transparency is a reality and continuous improvement of our environmental footprint is the central goal.
The Trust Protocol is an industry-wide initiative to promote U.S. cotton to brands and retailers as a sustainable fiber produced by growers who strive for continuous improvement.
At a crucial time for the U.S. cotton industry, the Trust Protocol helps U.S. growers document and showcase their land management and environmental stewardship practices while helping them achieve continuous improvement related to certain environmental sustainability measurements.
Each participating grower commits to documenting and tracking their progress toward improving soil carbon health while seeking year over year reductions in soil erosion, overall land use, energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions.
Leonard recently sat down with Cotton Farming magazine to talk about the Trust Protocol and the important role consultants play in helping their farmer clients enroll in the program. He shares his thoughts in this interview with Cotton Farming Editor Carroll Smith.
QIf one of your cotton farmers asks you to assist them in
enrolling in the Trust Protocol, what needs to happen to help this process go smoothly?
AThe first thing the grower needs to do is visit trustuscotton.org. That is the general website for retrieving information to sign up, to enter information and to approve any information that has been entered.
At that point, the farmer can sign up and go through the process to approve their consultant to enter information for them. I would urge the farmer and the consultant to get together, contact the help desk, which is growers@trustuscotton.org, and ask for a written copy of the survey. Then they will know exactly what information is going to be requested prior to them sitting down at a computer screen to enter it.
That’s very important because most of our growers are busy and have a lot of things going on. When they get to a pinch point — a question they can’t answer — they tend to back out of the program and forget about it. That’s another value of the consultant. They can help walk the farmer through it, and the consultant may have the answer to that question on the tip of their tongue and be able to take care of it immediately. There are some pinch points you can get over rather quickly just by seeing the survey ahead of time and knowing what those questions are.
I believe allowing the consultants to help enter a portion of this information for our cotton producers will improve the efficiency of the enrollment process.
QCan you provide more detail about “improving the efficiency” by allowing the consultant to participate?
AFrom the consultant’s standpoint, going back to the fact that they are the technical services provider, many of the questions in the survey for the Trust Protocol have to do with those recommendations being put forth from the consultant. Many of those recommendations are science based; they are proven; and the consultant has a very clear record of those recommendations. So, the consultant can assist the farmer in answering many of those questions.
I’ve taken the survey. I have gone through the entire process and by my estimate, a strong consultant who works very closely with the producer in all phases of cotton production can probably answer 70% to 80% of the questions that are put forth in the Trust Protocol.
The consultant can’t answer all the questions, so the farmer has to be present for at least part of the process. To me, the neat thing is that the Trust Protocol has gone above and beyond to protect the individual information of that grower. The process is that the grower must approve anything that the consultant does. They don’t have total access to the farmer’s information unless the farmer approves that on the front end and then again on the back end.
AI am excited about the Trust Protocol because it is a strong move for sustainability. We all know that in today’s households the word sustainability has become very common. For example, when consumers go to the store today, they are looking for sustainable goods whether it is food or clothing. So, sustainability is very important.
For the cotton industry, this is an opportunity to stand up to the plate and begin to control a little bit of their own destiny. By participating in the Trust Protocol and showing you are employing sustainable practices, you are going above and beyond many of the cotton producers around the world.
The United States is already recognized for great cotton quality, but we have to be able to document that now at the farm level with individual practices. The U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol brings that level of value to the individual producer. The hope in the future is that this value will translate into a much better return on their investment.
QOnce enrolled in the Trust Protocol, can farmers and
their consultants compare their sustainability efforts from one year to the next?
AYes. That is another part of the value of this program. It’s somewhat of a living document. The producer can see where they are on this scale of sustainability. You’re not always going to be at 80%, and the first year you’re not going to be at 100%. There is always room for improvement.
Another value is that the Trust Protocol is integrated with the FieldPrint Calculator platform from Field to Market. That program generates information that growers can use to compare their results to others in their area or even on a national level. However, the information is anonymous. There are no names associated with it. It’s all aggregated.
After seeing where they stand on the sustainability scale, the farmer can see that tweaking a particular practice a little bit can improve the efficiency of the operation. That’s what this is all about. Documenting what we are doing to demonstrate sustainability and determining how we can continue to improve so U.S. cotton can stay ahead of the rest of the world.
For more information about the U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol and to begin the enrollment process, visit trustuscotton.org.
Inflation Reduction Act Increases Ag Conservation Program Funds
Texas A&M Agricultural & Food Policy Center Provides Overview
BY BLAIR FANNIN
The Inflation Reduction Act recently signed into law by President Biden not only extended the Affordable Care Act, but also infused funding to several agricultural conservation programs familiar to producers. Economists with the Agricultural and Food Policy Center at Texas A&M University in College Station have compiled a briefing paper evaluating the effects of the bill on agriculture.
“The bottom line is that there is an enormous infusion of funding for conservation programs,” said Dr. Bart Fischer, food policy center co-director in the Department of Agricultural Economics of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Bryan-College Station. “Much discretion about the distribution of that funding is left to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, so we will have to see how they implement the program before we know how everything will work.”
Fischer said it’s important to note that the funding is shortlived and will run out midway through the next Farm Bill, at the end of fiscal year 2026.
“Further, in this case the conservation priorities were set by Congress rather than at the grassroots level, so it’s not yet clear what the uptake will be,” he said.
Breaking It Down
What did the Inflation Reduction Act change?
For agriculture, additional funds were given to four existing conservation programs: Environmental Quality Incentives Program, EQIP. Conservation Stewardship Program, CSP. Agricultural Conservation Easement Program, ACEP. Regional Conservation Partnership Program, RCPP.
The funding for these programs was extended through 2031. Additional funding was made available for rural development and forestry. According to the briefing paper, from the perspective of agricultural producers, the Inflation Reduction Act will provide a significant, short-term infusion of funding for these select conservation programs.
Highlights outlined in the food policy center briefing paper include: The IRA provided an additional $8.45 billion for EQIP through fiscal year 2026 and extended the program through fiscal year 2031. It increased funding for conservation innovation trials from $25 million to $50 million. In implementing the IRA, USDA is expected to prioritize proposals that “utilize diet and feed management to reduce enteric methane emissions from ruminants” and to provide funding for “one or more agricultural conservation practices or enhancements that the Secretary determines directly improve soil carbon, reduce nitrogen losses, or reduce, capture, avoid, or sequester carbon dioxide, methane, or nitrous oxide emissions, associated with agricultural production.” A new program being added is the Quantifying Carbon Sequestration and Greenhouse Gas Emissions. The IRA provided $300 million “to carry out a program to quantify carbon sequestration and carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide emissions, through which [NRCS] shall collect field-based data to assess the carbon sequestration and reduction in carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide emissions. Outcomes associated with activities carried out pursuant to this section and use the data to monitor and track those carbon sequestration and emissions trends through the Greenhouse Gas Inventory and Assessment Program of the Department of Agriculture.”
Details Will Determine Value
“The extent to which the additional funding is perceived as helpful will largely depend on how the USDA implements the provisions,” Fischer said. Meanwhile, producers continue to face enormous costs as they approach fall harvest, and a growing number of concerns remain over the upcoming crop year, the briefing paper notes.
“We are also getting asked a lot of questions about how this will impact the next Farm Bill,” Fischer said. “My answer is that an infusion of this size is certainly a boost to these programs, but because the additional funding dries up at the end of fiscal year 2026, it undoubtedly will complicate the next Farm Bill deliberations. Conservation groups will want to see the elevated funding levels continued, but that will require coming up with new money. Generally speaking, most farm groups want to see big improvements to the farm safety net. Next year is going to be interesting.”
Several agricultural conservation programs will benefit from the Inflation Reduction Act.
