The Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) awarded more than $1 billion in financial assistance (FA) to American farmers and ranchers in fiscal year (FY) 2016. These funds are provided through the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and offer financial cost-share and technical assistance to help growers implement conservation practices on working […]
Environmental Quality Incentives Program
Guest Post: From Cover Crops to High Tunnels
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published by the Ohio Ecological Food and Farm Association (OEFFA), an NSAC member organization. Their post highlights the benefits of the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) Organic Initiative, which provides financial and technical assistance to support the implementation and installation of conservation practices tailored to organic producers. Despite the significant benefits that the Organic Initiative can […]
Sustainable Agriculture Groups Call for Improved Organic Conservation Support
As demand for organic production continues to grow, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) has enormous potential to provide support to transitioning-to-organic farmers through conservation planning and technical and financial assistance. Through their Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) Organic Initiative (OI), NRCS offers important conservation supports to organic farmers, but […]
High Tunnels Create Opportunities for New Farmers
Zoë Bradbury of Valley Flora Farm is part of a team of family farmers (Zoe, her sister Abby, and her mother Betsy) raising over 100 varieties of organic fruits and vegetables on 90 acres along Flora’s Creek in Langlois, Oregon. Their CSA serves families within a 50-mile radius and the farm is committed to sustainable […]