The Illinois Sustainable Ag Partnership is excited to announce the publication of the first Illinois Cover Crop Incentive Directory. While the directory aims to provide a clear comparison of several programs that offer payment incentives to Illinois farmers for growing cover crops, it should be noted that the federal programs are available to growers in Kansas and other states. State and county programs could possibly provide examples for futures programs.

The directory includes information on 15 incentive opportunities, including publicly funded programs at the federal, state, and county levels, as well as privately funded programs throughout Illinois. By viewing the programs side by side, farmers will be able to compare programs and select the option that is best for their operation.  

The Directory also includes a “Stacking Matrix” to help farmers understand which programs can be combined to receive multiple incentives. With so many programs to choose from, and many programs having exceptions or exclusions for stacking, the Stacking Matrix provides a program-by-program guide to stacking opportunities.

The Partnership encourages farmers, conservation specialists, extension agents, and other farm advisors to share the directory with their networks and to get in touch with any suggested updates to the directory as programs continue to develop and evolve.