The five-year project will connect farmers, researchers and conservation partners to evaluate practical soil health strategies across diverse agricultural production systems.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) has awarded American Farmland Trust (AFT) nearly $5 million over five years through its Conservation Innovation Grants On-Farm Trials program.
The investment will help expand research into soil health practices and establish a nationwide network focused on evaluating biochar and its potential benefits for agricultural production.
According to Michael Shulman, Media Relations Strategist at AFT, the funding will support the development of a coordinated Soil Health Management Systems (SHMS) Network.
The initiative will bring together 35 demonstration farms across 14 states and five regions, working with more than 20 partner organizations to study how biochar performs alongside other soil improvement practices.
"Biochar has the potential to build more resilient agroecosystems by improving soil health, stabilizing and increasing yield and profitability, increasing beneficial microbial communities, improving soil water availability, and providing an efficient means to immediately improve degraded soils, particularly in high disturbance and water-limited systems," said AFT Climate and Soil Health Director and Principal Investigator Dr. Bianca Moebius-Clune.
"And when low-value biomass, like forest debris, is turned into biochar, that can also reduce wildfire risk for communities while benefiting both ecosystems and farm resilience. But farmers and ranchers want to see how new practices perform on farms like theirs before they invest in significant change," Moebius-Clune added.
The expanded research builds on AFT's existing biochar and cover crop trials in California, Illinois, Kentucky, Maine, Massachusetts, Nebraska, New York and Washington. Six additional states—Arizona, Maryland, North Carolina, Texas, Virginia and Wisconsin—will participate.
Researchers will evaluate biochar applications alongside cover crops, reduced tillage, compost, manure management, agroforestry, diversified rotations, and livestock integration.
Trials will cover various production systems, including vegetables, potatoes, peanuts, cotton, corn, soybeans, wheat, almonds, dairy and forage crops, with particular attention to areas experiencing water limitations and soil disturbance.
" This network puts locally adapted, biochar-integrated soil health systems to the test across diverse U.S. production systems and connects farmers with each other through peer networks. To address adoption barriers, AFT and partners will continue to develop coordinated soil health transition support. We do that through on-farm trials, trainings and resources, decision support tools, supply chain connections, and a network that expands access to technical and financial assistance, so that healthy soil becomes the norm, not the exception. This vision is what we call a New Conventional Agriculture: profitable, resilient farming built on healthy soil across all agricultural systems," Moebius-Clune added.
During the five-year project, researchers expect to collect more than 1,500 soil samples and assess crop yields, farm profitability, water management, microbial activity, and nutrient density. Participating farmers will receive financial assistance and protection against potential income losses associated with the trials.
AFT also plans at least 100 educational events, 20 field days, regional training sessions, and 30 practical resources. The network is expected to reach between 3,000 and 5,000 farmers, ranchers, and agricultural advisers.
New trials are anticipated to begin between fall 2027 and fall 2028, following an agreement expected by spring 2027.
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