A push to bring more private funding to farm conservation programs is showing signs of life, thanks in part to the Trump administration’s backing of “Make America Healthy Again” goals.
The Department of Agriculture is poised to make the effort — originally proposed by House Agriculture Chair Glenn Thompson (R-Pa.) in 2021 — part of a regenerative agriculture pilot program at the USDA.
But the plan is short on specifics and has outside groups searching for answers.
At issue is a law called the Sponsoring USDA Sustainability Targets in Agriculture to Incentivize Natural Solutions (SUSTAINS) Act. Although Congress included it in an appropriations bill for fiscal 2023, the USDA didn’t implement the program and it has languished over the last few years.
