Priority 6: Incentivize Soil Health & Risk Mitigation Through Federal Crop Insurance & Lending

Target Outcomes

The finance and insurance products that farmers rely on have immense potential to support a transition to regenerative agriculture, but current policies have created a system that often undermines, or even actively prevents, common sense soil health practices that reduce risk on farms – resulting in large scale soil loss and land degradation at an enormous cost to US taxpayers. Crop insurance and lending policy must be adjusted to support regenerative agriculture by removing outdated barriers and creating incentives that recognize the risk-reduction benefits of soil health and conservation management practices.

Summary of Policy Requests:

1. Crop Insurance: Remove barriers and expand incentives for producers to adopt risk-reducing soil health/conservation practices and more diversified operations. 
2. Lending: Develop offerings (such as lower rates, loan deferments and flexible terms) that fasttrack and vastly expand the viability of a large-scale transition to regenerative agriculture.

Relates to Farm Bill Titles: V (Credit) and XI (Crop Insurance)  recommendations.