Policy / Legislation - Federal

ISA represents sustainable agriculture, family farms, and local producers to policymakers in Springfield and Washington. ISA tracks legislation; supporting good policy and opposing bad policy as it relates to sustainable agriculture and local foods. ISA also organizes an annual lobby day to bring local food and sustainable agriculture consumers, activists, and producers together with their legislators. In addition, the ISA is working to educate farmers about some of the new conservation, sustainability, and local food provisions in the 2008 Farm Bill.

FEDERAL POLICY ISSUES

Value-Added Producer Grants

Program Basics

The Value-Added Producer Grants (VAPG) program provides competitive grants to individual independent agricultural producers, groups of independent producers, producer-controlled entities, organizations representing agricultural producers, and farmer or rancher cooperatives to create or develop value-added producer-owned businesses.

Agricultural producers include farmers, ranchers, loggers, agricultural harvesters and fishermen that engage in the production or harvesting of an agricultural commodity. These enterprises help increase farm income, create new jobs, contribute to community and rural economic development, and enhance food choices for consumers.

The term “value-added” includes an agricultural commodity or product that has undergone a change in physical state or was produced, marketed, or segregated (e.g. identity-preserved, eco-labeling, etc.) in a manner that enhances its value or expands the customer base of the product.

Grants may be used to fund one of the following two activities:

• Develop business plans and feasibility studies (including marketing plans or other planning activities) needed to establish viable marketing opportunities for value-added products; or
• Acquire working capital to operate a value-added business venture or alliance. Working capital applications generally must be supported by an independent feasibility study as well as a business plan.

Grant funds may not be used for repair, acquisition, or construction of a building or facility or to purchase, rent or install fixed equipment. Cash and/or in-kind matching funds are required, must be at least equal to the amount of Federal funds awarded, and must be expended in advance, such that for each grant dollar advanced, an equal amount of match shall have been expended first.

The program is administered by the Cooperative Division of USDA’s Rural Business Cooperative Service and grant applications are first screened through each state’s USDA Rural Development Office.

2008 Farm Bill Changes

The 2008 Farm Bill makes the following changes to the VAPG Program:

• The definition of a value-added agricultural product now includes – in addition to one that has been processed, segregated, produced with inherently value-added characteristics, and/or is a source of farm or ranch-based renewable energy – an agricultural commodity or product that is aggregated and marketed as a locally-produced agricultural food product.

Farmers can now be funded under the program for the development of mid-tier value chains, which the farm bill defines as local and regional supply networks that link independent producers with businesses and cooperatives that market value-added agricultural products in a manner that:

• targets and strengthens the profitability and competitiveness of small and medium sized family farms and ranches; and
• enter into an agreement from an eligible agricultural producer group, farmer or rancher cooperative, or majority controlled producer-based business venture that is engaged in the value chain on a marketing strategy.

The mid-tier value chain provision is aimed at assisting farmers and ranchers who are too large or remote to engage substantially in marketing directly to consumers but too small to profitably engage in high volume, low margin raw commodity production. It is intended to capitalize on the increasing demand for high quality products from family farms adhering to strong environmental and social values.

USDA website for the VAPG Program: www.rurdev.usda.gov/rbs/coops/vadg.htm.

An online assessment tool is available at www.rurdev.usda.gov/rbs/coops/vapgea.htm that will assist you in determining whether or not you are eligible to apply for a VAPG grant.

Matt Harris, Business Cooperative Specialist, Illinois USDA Rural Development, Matthew.Harris@il.usda.gov, 217-403-6211

Devin Brown, Conservation Policy Advocate, Illinois Stewardship Alliance, devin@ilstewards.org, 618-771-0237

The New Conservation Stewardship Program

• Rewards Existing Conservation
• Rewards New Conservation
• Continuous Sign-up
• Includes Owned or Rented Land
• For Working Land
• Program Funding
• How do Farmers Apply?
• For any CSP related questions contact:

The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) launched the new
Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) on August 10, 2009. CSP provides payments
to agricultural producers for conservation practices that reduce soil erosion, improve soil
fertility, conserve energy, enhance wildlife and pollinator habitat, and improve water
quality.
                                                      What’s Unique about CSP
Rewards Existing Conservation
The new CSP provides incentive payments to agricultural producers for conservation
practices that are already in place on the farm. With other USDA conservation programs,
such as EQIP (Environmental Quality Incentives Program), farmers only receive
payments for additional conservation activities, not those in already in place. Farmers
that have been doing good conservation on their working land for years, but haven’t
qualified for other programs, now can be rewarded for their dedicated land stewardship.
Not only do farmers receive a higher payment for existing conservation, but CSP assists
with the expensive maintenance of these activities.
Rewards New Conservation
New conservation practices on the farm are expensive and often have a long payback
period. There are over 70 difference activities that are rewarded under CSP, and farmers
can choose new conservation activities that they would like to implement over the 5 year
CSP contract on their farm. To access the CSP activity list click here.
Continuous Sign-up
Unlike other programs that have a short sign-up period, once a year, CSP now has a
continuous sign-up, which allows farmers to enroll in the program at any time throughout
the year. There will be periodic cut-off dates for ranking applicants, but if a farmer
misses a ranking period, they will be automatically entered into the next ranking period.
Statewide Enrollment
Unlike the old CSP, the Conservation Security Program of 2004, the new CSP doesn’t
prioritize select watersheds. All working, agricultural land throughout Illinois is eligible.
Includes Owned or Rented Land
CSP contracts are for 5 years and include the whole farm operation, whether it’s owned
or rented. If cash rented, proof that the land will be farmed by the farm operator during
the contract period is required. If the rented land cannot be secured for the entire contract
period, that does not disqualify the whole farm operation. Only that piece of land will not
be included in the contracted acreage.
For Working Land
CSP only includes working land that is in production. Land that has been fallow or out of
production for the past two years is not eligible. Eligible lands include cropland,
grassland, prairie, improved pastureland, rangeland, non-industrial private forestland - a
new land use for the program - and agricultural land. CSP does not prevent farmers or
ranchers from receiving other farm program payments, although lands currently enrolled
in the Conservation Reserve Program, Grassland Reserve Program, Wetlands Reserve
Program, or the old Conservation Security Program are ineligible for the program until
those existing program contracts conclude.
Program Funding
Successful farmers will receive five-year contracts and up to $200,000 in benefits over
the five year contract period for each farm. CSP has $12 billion over the next 10 years,
allowing an estimated 13 million acres to be enrolled nationwide every year.
How do Farmers Apply?
The first ranking period cut-off will be September 30, 2009. The first step to enrolling in
CSP is to determine your eligibility. Click here for a Producer Self-Screening Checklist.
If you think that CSP may be right for you, contact your local NRCS district office. For a
list of NRCS service centers in Illinois, click here. For a CSP Application, click here.
Visit the USDA NRCS CSP site here for complete program details.
For any CSP related questions contact:
Devin Brown
Conservation Policy Advocate
devin@ilstewards.org
618-771-0237