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America’s Farmers Support

Increased Adoption of COVER Crops

78% of farmers agree that crop insurance should offer discounts for risk-reducing conservation practices.

Farming in the US is becoming riskier and riskier. Increased erosion, more extreme weather, and rising input costs are putting American farmers at greater risk than ever before. Risk reducing practices, like cover crops, are needed to ensure farms remain resilient and thrive for generations to come.

Among the most popular and effective initiatives is USDA’s Cover Crop Program, which offered discounts on crop insurance premiums for farmers who planted cover crops that year.

A North Carolina State University study found that from 2005 to 2016, across 12 Corn Belt states, higher cover crop adoption directly led to millions in savings for taxpayers by reducing crop insurance costs.

Cover crops, a crop grown to cover the soil, are widely hailed by farmers because of their significant benefits to soil health, water management, and bottom lines.

Benefits of Cover Crop Programs

Reducing the Risk of Crop Failure

More than three-quarters of crop farmers (78%) support the USDA offering discounts on premiums for utilizing conservation practices that have been shown to reduce the risk of crop failure.

Crop Insurance Program

Two-thirds of row crop farmers (66%) support the inclusion of the USDA's crop insurance premium discount program as a permanent option within the crop insurance program. Only 19% opposed making the discount permanent.

Farmers Across the Country Vouch for Cover Crops

JA Scott Farms

Kosciusko County, Indiana

Jim and Jamie Scott operate JA Scott Farms in Kosciusko County, Indiana, where they grow approximately 2,000 acres of corn, soybeans and wheat – all of which incorporate cover crops every winter.

Roberts Farm

Halls, Tennessee

Charlie Roberts utilizes cover crops on his farm in Halls, TN to protect soil health and increase water infiltration on his cropland.

USDA's Agricultural Research Service

Beltsville, Maryland

USDA's Agricultural Research Service in Beltsville, Maryland is leading a nationwide effort to improve and expand the use of cover crops in agriculture.

NRCS National Plant Materials Center

Washington, DC

Also beneficial in urban settings, NRCS National Plant Materials Center Manager David Kidwell-Slak and his team plant Cereal Rye as a cover crop in the garden beds of the urban farm in Washington, D.C.

Cover Crop Act Supporters

Support for incorporating cover crops into crop insurance is widespread. One bill that would encourage actuarially sound adoption of cover crops is the COVER Act. The bill also directs USDA to examine other conservation practices to see how they should work within crop insurance to save taxpayers and farmers money