A New USDA Regenerative Ag Pilot Program

If you are staring at another fertilizer bill and wondering how you will keep your yields up without bleeding cash, you are not alone. Input costs have stayed stubborn while markets bounce around.

At a recent U.S. Department of Agriculture press conference, Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins and Secretary Robert Kennedy announced a new effort aimed at that exact pressure point: a regenerative agriculture pilot program designed to improve soil health and lower farmer production costs over time.

Below is a plain language walkthrough of what the USDA launches, how it works, and what it could mean for your farm or ranch. This overview is intended to stay politically neutral and put the focus where you live every day: on the field, the herd, and the balance sheet.

What did USDA announce?

In the press conference, USDA leaders shared a new pilot program that will invest 700 million dollars in regenerative agriculture through existing conservation programs that American farmers already use and recognize. The regenerative agriculture pilot program is framed as:

• Voluntary and farmer first
• Focused on outcome based conservation practices
• Delivered through the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS)
• Built on EQIP and CSP, not a brand new sign up portal

Instead of creating a separate, confusing application, USDA will route this new pilot through the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) and the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP). Together, those two programs are the main tools NRCS uses to help producers address resource concerns like erosion, water quality, and long term productivity on agricultural land.

USDA described the initiative as a way to strengthen American agriculture, support a healthier food supply, and recognize farmers and ranchers who are already trying regenerative farming approaches.

What is “regenerative agriculture” in this program?

There are a lot of opinions out there about regenerative ag. For the purposes of this USDA initiative, regenerative agriculture is described as a conservation management approach that emphasizes:

• Soil health
• Water management and water quality
• Overall natural vitality on working lands
• Long term productivity and sustainability for American agriculture

Think of regenerative agriculture practices as an expansion of conservation practices you already know, not a totally new religion. Examples include:

• Using cover crops to protect topsoil, improve nutrient cycling, and build nutrient density in forages and crops
• Reducing tillage where feasible
• Improving grazing management on rangeland and pasture
• Managing inputs, including fertilizers and pesticides, more precisely so you get the benefit without wasting money or harming soil biology

The goal is to build systems that support both the land and the bottom line over many years, not just one season.

How the regenerative agriculture pilot program works

USDA explained that this new pilot program will not replace existing conservation tools. Instead, it will:

1. Use whole farm planning
   • NRCS staff will look at your entire operation, not just a single field or one practice at a time.
   • Soil health, water quality, erosion, and other resource concerns will be addressed together under one whole farm planning process.
2. Reduce red tape
   • Producers will use a single application that can bundle multiple conservation practices.
   • The same NRCS forms and processes you use now will apply, but EQIP and CSP funding will be tagged for the regenerative agriculture pilot program.
3. Provide outcome reports
   • Each producer will receive a report from NRCS that captures the outcomes of their regenerative ag conservation practices.
   • These outcomes can be shared with lenders, corporate supply chain partners, or others who care about sustainability and long term productivity.
4. Bring additional partners to the table
   • USDA plans to use the Sustains Act authority to invite corporate supply chain partners to match NRCS dollars.
   • The idea is to connect the work happening on American farm and ranch acres to consumer demand for higher nutrient density foods and more sustainable sourcing.

EQIP, CSP, and where the 700 million fits in

Here is how the dollars break down, according to USDA:

• Roughly 400 million dollars will be steered through EQIP, the Environmental Quality Incentives Program
• Roughly 300 million dollars will be steered through CSP, the Conservation Stewardship Program

Both programs are administered by the Natural Resources Conservation Service. Your local NRCS field office is still the front door for technical assistance, eligibility questions, and sign up. The new pilot does not change farm bill authority, but it does change how some of that conservation funding is prioritized and bundled.

If you have ever felt like EQIP and CSP were fragmented, hitting one small resource concern at a time, this initiative is supposed to move toward a more unified, whole operation approach.

How this could impact production costs and input decisions

The stated goal of the pilot program is to support regenerative farming that can lower production costs over time. Here is where that might become real on your place:

• Input costs
  • Healthier soil can improve water holding capacity and nutrient cycling. That may allow you to cut back on synthetic fertilizer rates or irrigation passes while maintaining yields.
  • Smarter pesticide and herbicide strategies can protect crop health while trimming waste and avoiding unnecessary applications.
• Long term productivity
  • Stronger soil structure supports traffic, reduces compaction, and protects yields in wet or dry years.
  • Addressing multiple resource concerns at once can protect the value of your agricultural land for future generations.
• Risk management
  • Conservation practices like cover crops and improved grazing systems can reduce erosion and help you ride out weather extremes, which ties directly into long term sustainability of American farms and ranches.

None of this is magic. It takes time, management, and some trial and error. The idea of this new pilot is to share more of the upfront cost and provide more structured technical assistance so you are not carrying the whole risk alone.

What kinds of practices may qualify?

While USDA will release more detailed guidance through usda.gov and local offices, the press conference highlighted regenerative agriculture practices that:

• Improve soil health metrics
• Protect or enhance water quality
• Build nutrient density in crops, forages, and the food supply
• Reduce erosion and protect natural resources on working agricultural land

That could include practices such as:

• Cover crops on row crop ground
• Prescribed grazing and forage management for ranchers
• Reduced tillage or no till systems where agronomically appropriate
• Diversified crop rotations
• Filter strips, riparian buffers, and other structural conservation practices
• Manure management practices that protect nearby water bodies

If you are already using these kinds of conservation practices, the regenerative ag pilot program may help you stack and expand them under a single plan. If you are new to regenerative agriculture, NRCS technical assistance can help you design a realistic starting point.

Who is eligible and how do you apply?

At this stage, USDA has emphasized that:

• EQIP and CSP remain open to producers year round, as usual
• The new pilot builds on those existing sign up processes
• Both beginning operations and multi generation American farm families are eligible, along with ranchers, specialty crop growers, and others

Your best starting point is your local NRCS office. Staff there can:

• Review your current operation and resource concerns
• Flag which EQIP or CSP offerings are being aligned with the regenerative agriculture pilot program
• Help you create a whole farm planning approach that lines up with the initiative and your own financial goals

If you already work with an advisory council, conservation district, cooperative extension, or trusted agronomist, bring them into the conversation. Getting everyone on the same page early can save time and frustration.

Corporate partnerships and the supply chain

One of the more technical pieces of the announcement is the plan to connect:

• Outcomes on individual farms
• Corporate sustainability goals
• Consumer expectations around nutrient density and sustainability in the food supply

Through the Sustains Act, NRCS can work with private companies to match federal conservation dollars. That means a company with a strong interest in regenerative agriculture practices in its supply chain could co invest in projects on your land, alongside USDA.

In theory, that might:

• Open up new marketing opportunities for farms that participate
• Help document conservation outcomes that matter to buyers and lenders
• Bring more dollars to rural communities without changing who owns or operates the land

Details on specific corporate partners will come later through USDA press releases, not all at once in a single press conference. For now, the main takeaway is that the regenerative agriculture pilot program aims to connect farm level conservation to broader supply chain and sustainability goals.

How does this relate to pesticides, nutrition, and health?

During the announcement, USDA leaders also mentioned:

• Ongoing work with EPA related to pesticides and toxic exposures
• SNAP waivers and nutrition incentive efforts
• New dietary guidelines that emphasize whole foods and nutrient density

Those topics are highly debated in public, but what matters on your place is how programs land at the farm gate. So here are the practical pieces:

• The regenerative ag initiative stays voluntary and incentive based. It does not ban pesticides or specific input products.
• The focus is on giving farmers more options to adjust systems in ways that may reduce long term dependence on costly inputs.
• Nutrition and health efforts may increase demand for products grown using regenerative agriculture practices, but they do not change today’s conservation contracts overnight.

You do not have to agree with every policy choice to take a hard look at a program that could improve your soil health and lower production costs. It is your business, your call.

What about urban agriculture and tribal communities?

USDA also highlighted that:

• The Office of Urban Agriculture and Innovative Production and its advisory council will help extend regenerative priorities into cities and urban communities.
• Tribal conservation districts and tribal food sovereignty efforts are part of the broader conservation strategy.

If you operate in or near urban areas, or you work with tribal partners, expect your local NRCS to have additional technical assistance tools aimed at these specific contexts. The regenerative agriculture pilot program is meant to cover both large commercial acres and smaller or more specialized agricultural land.

What farmers and ranchers can do next

If you want to see whether this initiative can help your operation, here are practical steps:

1. Contact your local NRCS office
   • Ask specifically about EQIP and CSP opportunities connected to the regenerative agriculture pilot program.
   • Bring a list of your top three resource concerns, such as erosion, water quality, or forage productivity.
2. Map out your whole farm plan
   • Look at how conservation practices might work across your operation, not just one corner.
   • Think in five to ten year terms for long term productivity and sustainability, not just this season’s cash flow.
3. Run the numbers
   • Estimate how changes in tillage, cover crops, or grazing management could affect input costs and yields.
   • Consider how incentives from NRCS and potential supply chain partners might offset transition costs.
4. Stay tuned for more detail
   • Watch for additional guidance and press releases from USDA and usda.gov as the new pilot rolls out.
   • Keep an eye on how the next farm bill may interact with conservation funding over time.

Where FarmRaise fits in

No federal program will magically fix bookkeeping. If you decide to participate in this initiative, you will need clear records of:

• Which regenerative agriculture practices you adopt on which fields
• How your input costs change over time
• How yields, forage quality, or herd performance respond
• What you submit to NRCS, lenders, and other partners

FarmRaise accounting and reporting tools can help you track these numbers in one place so you can tell a clear story about your conservation practices and your financial performance. That way, if a lender, NRCS planner, or buyer asks what this regenerative agriculture pilot program has actually done for your operation, you do not have to dig through a pile of notebooks in the shop.

If regenerative ag is on your mind, start with your soil, your numbers, and a conversation at your local NRCS office. Federal programs will come and go. Healthy land and solid records will serve your family business no matter who is behind the microphone at the next press conference.