Farms.com Home   News

USDA to fund ‘Climate-Smart’ program

Just under $3 billion was earmarked by the USDA last fall for the Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities program.

Funding has become available in the past few weeks, says Ben West, executive director for Farmers for Soil Health, one of the groups that received $95 million in funding.

This project looks to accelerate long-term cover crop adoption by creating a platform to incentivize farmers, according to a USDA release. The platform will quantify, verify and facilitate the sale of ecosystem benefits, creating a marketplace to generate demand for “climate-smart commodities.”

The lead partner is the National Fish & Wildlife Foundation, and other major partners include the United Soybean Board, the National Corn Growers Association and the National Pork Board.

Click here to see more...

Trending Video

Season 6, Episode 12: Veterinarians’ Perspectives on Managing Swine Herd Health Across All Phases

Video: Season 6, Episode 12: Veterinarians’ Perspectives on Managing Swine Herd Health Across All Phases

Identifying challenges in swine production and turning them into solutions through research and team development is the focus of this episode. Dr. Christine Mainquist-Whigham of Pillen Family Farms and DNA Genetics shares insights on herd health, biosecurity and trial work to improve pig performance. She also discusses her team’s research philosophy, how they evaluate rate of investment and how they gather feedback from employees to address challenges and maintain herd health across all phases of production. Dr. Carlos Roudergue of Country View Family Farms discusses the growing complexity of swine production, especially as technology increases and employee interaction decreases. He also shares how their workforce is shifting toward more specialized roles to support herd health and efficiency.