The federal government is offering $700 million in funding for farmers and ranchers who prioritize the health of the land they work. It’s part of a pilot program facilitated by the Natural Resources and Conservation Service.
"It's gonna help those landowners that are interested improve soil health, water management and the natural vitality of our agriculture communities in Montana – which is huge," says Gayle Barry, state conservationist with the NRCS.
Barry explains through the new program, producers can submit a single application and get connected with the right funding opportunities. These programs will measure things like soil health, and help them track it along the way. Then, they get reimbursed for utilizing those practices.
"This is really a program that allows us to work even more closely with those folks who might already be doing something good and maybe want to do some more," Barry says. "Or if they haven't dipped their toe in the water yet and they're interested in just learning about it."
The program is part of the federal initiative to Make America Healthy Again, which says human health starts with our farms.
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Montana’s farmers have been hit particularly hard by the war in Iran. Price increases and market instability are straining producers already under pressure. A federal judge ruled a logging project near Whitefish violated federal environmental laws. A former Montana campaign consultant who pleaded guilty to embezzlement is now in custody. -
Montana Farmers Union is working to enhance legislative literacy in rural communities. Events demonstrate how to contact representatives and participate in the legislative session. Ag communities have been impacted by several state and federal policy changes in recent years. -
Agricultural producers across the nation are aging out. In her podcast Reframing Rural, Montana-born journalist Megan Torgerson explores this issue and others that impact rural communities across the state. In her latest season, Succession Stories, Torgerson asks Montana farmers and ranchers one of the biggest questions they face today: who’s going to take over their land? MTPR’s Victoria Traxler sits down with Torgerson to hear what she learned -
Cattle industry representatives say they need more workers. They hope expanding a foreign labor program will help. Finding adequate farm labor is one of the biggest challenges producers face. -
A Montana couple is donating their multimillion dollar cattle ranch to preserve its conservation legacy and keep the land in the hands of locals. It's the largest ranchland donation in the history of Montana. The land sits among some of the state's best remaining habitat for threatened grassland birds.
