USDA scraps $3B climate program, citing lack of farm impact

The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced Monday that it has officially canceled the $3 billion Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities program, a signature Biden-era initiative aimed at promoting environmentally friendly farming practices.

The decision follows what the agency called a “comprehensive review,” which concluded that the program’s structure did not align with the priorities of the Trump administration and provided too little direct benefit to farmers.

Originally launched to support projects that encouraged soil health, carbon sequestration, methane reduction, and other recognized sustainable practices, the PCSC program had awarded funding to 135 projects across all 50 states. Recipients included nonprofits like the National Fish & Wildlife Foundation, major agribusinesses such as Archer-Daniels-Midland, and commodity trade groups for crops like soybeans and rice.

But the USDA said that its review revealed that much of the funding was absorbed by administrative and overhead costs rather than reaching producers on the ground. In a news release, Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins said, “The majority of these projects had sky-high administration fees which in many instances provided less than half of the federal funding directly to farmers.”

Some projects may still continue under new conditions. The USDA will allow existing recipients to reapply under a restructured version of the program, provided they can demonstrate that at least 65 percent of the federal funding will go directly to producers, and that they’ve enrolled and paid at least one farmer by December 31, 2024.

Rollins emphasized that the agency’s focus is shifting toward what it calls the Advancing Markets for Producers initiative, which is intended to replace the PCSC program and better reflect Trump administration priorities. She was critical of the previous administration’s goals, calling the Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities “largely built to advance the green new scam at the benefit of NGOs, not American farmers.”

She added, “The concerns of farmers took a backseat during the Biden Administration. During my short time as Secretary, I have heard directly from our farmers that many of the USDA partnerships are overburdened by red tape, have ambiguous goals, and require complex reporting that push farmers onto the sidelines. We are correcting these mistakes and redirecting our efforts to set our farmers up for an unprecedented era of prosperity.”

The USDA stated that it will honor all eligible expenses incurred by program partners before April 13, 2025. No new funds will be made available for these projects, but the department has pledged to contact each grantee individually to discuss future participation under the revised guidelines.

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