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USDA to allow voluntary termination of CRP contract

The USDA has announced it will allow producers to terminate their Conservation Reserve Program contract if it’s in the final year of the agreement.

Farm Service Agency Administrator Zach Ducheneaux says the flexibilities will help address global food supply challenges.

“In response to the anticipated demand based on Putin’s invasion of Ukraine and the impact to the global food supply there, we heard from the countryside that our producers want to get ready to meet that need and this is one of the tools that we can offer to help those producers do that,” he says.

Producers approved for the one-time voluntary termination will not have to repay rental payments.

He tells Brownfield “and then producers can start to prepare the soil after the nesting season for whatever production is to come and be ready to help in the next production cycle to meet that need.”

The Farm Service Agency is mailing letters with details about voluntary termination and other options. Producers will be asked to submit a written request for termination through their local USDA Service Center.  

Ducheneaux says it’s important to continue to adjust programs to better meet the needs of producers.

“US Ag Secretary Vilsack has really empowered us at the agencies to take that feedback from our stakeholders and do our best to exercise our flexibility to their benefits,” he says. “…it’s part of making our programs and processes more user-friendly, easier on our staff, and more inclusive of our produces.”

The USDA also announced additional flexibilities for the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) and Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP).

Audio: Zach Ducheneaux