About Farmers for Soil Health
Farmers for Soil Health (FSH) is a program created by farmers and is committed to enhancing soil health practices, like planting cover crops, to improve the environment and profitability of farmers. The program provides financial incentives and local research-based technical support to help farmers with field transitions, and an exclusive marketplace is in development to connect farmers and supply chain partners interested in supporting sustainable farming practices.
Each participating state has dedicated on-the-ground technical advisors to provide research-based information and educational resources to aid in the transition of your field. It is well established that soil health management systems, such as no-tillage, minimum till, and cover crops increase carbon sequestration, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and improve water quality, while simultaneously benefiting farmers through increased drought resilience and nutrient availability, reduced erosion, as well as other advantages.
To help cover the start-up costs of cover crops, this program offers financial assistance of $35 per acre, 1-year contracts up to 2,000 acres per farm entity. Anyone is eligible to enroll in Farmers for Soil Health, even if those acres have been planted with cover crops previously. Enrolling in the program is simple and will give you access to these free resources. The 20 states represent 713,000 farmers and 157.7 million acres. These acres encompass the bulk of the Corn Belt and the Great Lakes and Chesapeake Bay watersheds.
Click below to connect with your local Technical Assistance provider!
The Center for Regenerative Agriculture (CRA) and the Soil Health Institute (SHI) collaborate to prepare educational tools to support state Technical Advisors and farmers on cover crop best practices. Educational tools created include:
- “how-to” videos
- podcast episodes
- informational fact sheets
- online interactive farmer educational presentations
- and regional in-person training workshops for commodity staff and other partners
- Year 1: 2023-2024 … COMPLETED
- Year 2: 2024-2025 … COMPLETED
- Year 3: 2025-2026 … COMPLETED
- Year 4: 2026-2027 … Enrollment opens May 1, 2026, deadline to be announced
Interested in enrolling? Click below!
- Cash flow impacts of cover crops: Information for lenders
- How cover crops can improve net profitability in crop share arrangements: Information for landowners
- What cover crops are and how they protect and improve landowners soil
- Grazing cover crops: Boosting soil health and economic returns: Information for producers and landowners
- Integrating drone technology into cover cropping systems
- Soil Health and Profitability: Frequently Asked Questions
- Soil Health Monitoring: Like Maintaining Your Equipment
- Soil Health Investments for Agricultural Lenders
A collaborative initiative
Farmers for Soil Health is a collaborative initiative led by Soy Checkoff, Pork Checkoff, and National Corn Growers Association in partnership with state commodity groups and conservation organizations.
