Two Projects Involving the Soil and Water Outcomes Fund to Receive Funding Through USDA’s Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities Initiative

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Press Release | September 14, 2022

Up to $185 Million in Total Funding Will Support Thousands of Farmers, Including Those in Underserved Communities

Media Contacts:
Laura Orris: laura@theoutcomesfund.com
Adam Kiel: adam@theoutcomesfund.comDan Yeoman: yeoman@theoutcomesfund.com 

ANKENY, IA and WASHINGTON, DC—The Soil and Water Outcomes Fund today announced its involvement on two of the projects awarded funding through the USDA’s Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities initiative.

The two projects are the Midwest Climate-Smart Commodity Program (with an approximate funding ceiling of $95 million) and the U.S. Climate-Smart Cotton Program (with an approximate funding ceiling of $90 million). Nationwide, only 14 projects were awarded with approximate funding ceilings of $70-$95 million from the more than 1,000 applications received by USDA.

Midwest Climate-Smart Commodity Program Details

This project will build markets and provide funding to farmers via outcome-based contracts for the reduction and removal of carbon dioxide through the adoption of new climate-smart practices. The remaining project funding will support farmer enrollment assistance, carbon quantification, technical assistance support, measurement, reporting and verification, and underserved farmer outreach and enrollment.
$95 million in funding; 12 focus states

U.S. Climate-Smart Cotton Program

The Soil and Water Outcomes Fund is collaborating with this project’s lead, The U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol, as the contracted Ecosystem Service Market Provider (ESMP). In this capacity, we will provide measuring/quantification, monitoring, reporting, and verification (MMRV) and tracking for the U.S. Climate-Smart Cotton Program.

Interested farmers can learn more and enroll in the Cotton Trust Protocol at www.TrustUSCotton.org.

“This is an exciting day for U.S. agriculture and for the Soil and Water Outcomes Fund,” said Dan Yeoman, co-managing director of the Soil and Water Outcomes Fund. “As a farmer-driven program, we are humbled by USDA’s Climate Smart funding awards and the support it will bring for producers adopting new climate-smart practices. We are grateful to the participating SWOF farmers who helped build this program and thankful for our partners who have come together to execute this ambitious and critical vision. We’re excited to get started.”

“We are thrilled that USDA and Secretary Vilsak selected two Soil and Water Outcomes Fund projects among the inaugural Climate-Smart Commodity projects,” said Adam Kiel, co-managing director of the Soil and Water Outcomes Fund and executive vice president of AgOutcomes. “We look forward to working with more farmers, in more areas, with the USDA funding and the private matching funding we have been able to attract.”

The Soil and Water Outcomes Fund is widely regarded as the most farmer-friendly ecosystems services offering on the market today because of its ease of enrollment, simple contracting, local support from conservation agronomists, and industry-leading farmer payments.

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