Gevo is looking for farmers to participate in our Climate-Smart Farm-to-Flight Grower’s Program, in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Agriculture Climate-Smart Commodities grant program.
Farmers participating in the grower’s program can receive cash payments for regenerative agriculture practices that reduce the carbon intensity of their operations and enhance the soil in their fields with elevated levels of soil organic carbon (SOC), often resulting in improved yield. Gevo places a high value on corn grown using these techniques and will pay premium prices.
The Grower’s Program is designed to meet farmers where they’re at, and our goal is to grow the use of Climate-Smart practices in our recruitment area. Farmers should understand that increasing the use of regenerative farming methods and tracking the results are the chief goals of the program, and that our administrators and field-team members want to help farmers get the job done and receive payments. Every farmer in the geographic area who is growing the right crops has the potential to participate.
To receive grower payments, growers must be eligible to receive federal funds. Just to be clear, it’s the USDA that determines each farmer’s eligibility, and in this program Gevo’s role is to verify each farmer’s eligibility. To verify eligibility, growers provide Gevo with a release authorization, which allows USDA to share the growers’ USDA documents with Gevo. All entities with a share in the crop need to meet all eligibility requirements, and this eligibility needs to be determined each year, for every year a grower is enrolled, meaning new authorization will be needed for 2024, 2025, and 2026.
Documentation provided by USDA to Gevo include:
- Certification that the farmer is compliant with highly erodible land wetland regulations.
- Verification that they are actively engaged in farming.
- Compliant with controlled substances policy rules.
- Field maps that show corn acreage planted.
- Cropping information for that year, including date planted, crop planted, acres planted, shares, idle acres, organic status, and irrigation status.
Underserved Farmers Should Consider Joining the Climate-Smart Grower’s Program
To attract underserved farmers to the program, Gevo has established an advisory council that will offer guidance for farms representing a variety of groups, including farmers who fall into the following underserved categories:
- Gender
- Minorities
- Indigenous People
As part of the USDA Climate-Smart Commodities program, Gevo has a target of 10 percent enrolled acreage with underserved producers. The project area includes lands farmed by members of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and may cover areas farmed by members of the Sisseton Wahpeton Sioux Tribe.
Communication and Reporting Are Key to Grower’s Program Success
Gevo Climate-Smart Grower’s Program utilizes consultants to educate farmers on conservation practices, soil sampling, soil testing, and capturing the necessary data to determine the reductions in the carbon intensity of the corn they produce. These contractors report their project activity so program administrators know how Climate-Smart funds are utilized. Gevo compiles these reports to create a quarterly report that is submitted to USDA.
The Gevo Climate-Smart Grower’s Program is designed to identify roadblocks for participation in climate-smart practices on all farms, and to sign up farmers to commit to using these practices to help drive down the carbon intensity of crops. The regenerative agriculture techniques employed will help to improve the soil and enhance productivity and sequester carbon, while reducing reliance on synthetic fertilizers.
IMPORTANT:
This material is based upon work supported by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, under agreement number NR233A750004G076.
Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. In addition, any reference to specific brands or types of products or services does not constitute or imply an endorsement by the U.S. Department of Agriculture for those products or services.
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For more information visit the USDA Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities