Lawmakers across the country are working to create a new bill to replace the farm bill passed in 2018, and one of the practices being examined is regenerative farming. Experts said the initiative focuses on sustainability, such as cover cropping and no-till practices, rather than industrial farming.
Amanda Potter is the Rowan County Cooperative Extension Agent for Agriculture and Natural Resources. She said education is vital to make the implementation of regenerative farming as seamless as possible.
“They’re also wanting to push for some more education available- possibly through USDA’s technical providers, such as the NRCS, which is the full conservation office. They’re trying to push for this education so that way, farmers and producers who do want to switch to these more regenerative farming practices have some better resources and some easier ways to access the education to actually implement these practices,” said Potter.
Potter said the switch from industrial to regenerative farming on Kentucky land, which usually grows corn, soy, and wheat, will not happen overnight- but the sustainability of regenerative farming will help make better crops in the long term.
“Agriculture can be kind of an issue as far as climate-smart practices are concerned, because they are contributing to soil erosion with till practices and kind of removing things that aren’t there. And it can actually cause a lot of issues later on with that particular area; it can cause issues with greenhouse gasses,” said Potter.
According to a 2023 farm bill update by the University of Kentucky, it’s projected only 15% of the bill’s budget will be used on farm commodities, crop insurance, and conservation. The remaining 85% is set to fund nutrition programs.
Lawmakers aim to pass the 2023 farm bill before the 2018 farm bill expires next month, September 30.