Browsing by Author "Miller, Lee"

Now showing 1 - 4 of 4
  • Thumbnail Image
    ItemOpen Access
    Policy Opportunities to Increase Cover Crop Adoption on North Carolina Farms
    (2012-04-27) Chin, Jennifer; Zook, Katy; Miller, Lee
    Cover cropping is an agricultural practice that produces on-farm benefits while contributing to broader public sustainability goals. However, barriers to farmer adoption of cover crops remain poorly understood. This study seeks to determine the relative importance of the barriers that farmers overcome to adopt cover crops in North Carolina and identify the resources that enable their success. We implemented an email survey of NC farmers to gather quantitative data about cover crop use and preferences, supplemented by qualitative interviews with experts on cover crop adoption to determine the influence of policies on farmers’ decision to implement cover crops. Our data show that farmers in NC overcame three broad categories of challenges to adopt cover crops: agronomic, input costs, and knowledge transfer. The level of these challenges varies depending on farm size and income, age of farmer, farming experience, and whether information to plant cover crops was obtained through extension, farmer networks, or private industry. Timing, in particular, was a challenge for farmers regardless of their demographic characteristics. We recommend a holistic policy approach that strengthens diverse types of knowledge sharing through on-farm demonstration, bolsters farmer incentives using existing cost-share programs, and invests in applied research to develop varieties that are more easily incorporated into a cash crop rotation.
  • Thumbnail Image
    ItemOpen Access
    Policy Opportunities to Increase Cover Crop Adoption on North Carolina Farms
    (2012-04-27) Miller, Lee; Zook, Katy; Chin, Jennifer
    Cover cropping is an agricultural practice that produces on-farm benefits while contributing to broader public sustainability goals. However, cover crops have not been widely adopted in the United States, while the barriers to farmer adoption of cover crops have received little research attention. This study considers the relative importance of the barriers that farmers overcome to adopt cover crops in North Carolina and identifies the resources that enable successful adoption. We used an email survey of NC farmers to gather quantitative data about cover crop use and preferences, supplemented by qualitative interviews with experts on cover crop adoption. Our data show that farmers in NC overcame three broad categories of challenges to adopt cover crops: agronomic, input costs, and knowledge transfer. The level of these challenges varies depending on farm size and income, age of farmer, farming experience, and whether information to plant cover crops was obtained through extension, farmer networks, or private industry. Timing for planting, in particular, challenges farmers regardless of their demographic characteristics. We recommend a holistic policy approach that strengthens diverse knowledge transfer networks, bolsters farmer incentives through existing cost-share programs, and invests in applied research to develop varieties that better complement common cash crop rotations.
  • Thumbnail Image
    ItemOpen Access
    Policy Opportunities to Increase Cover Crop Adoption on North Carolina Farms
    (2012-04-27) Miller, Lee; Zook, Katy; Chin, Jennifer
    Cover cropping is an agricultural practice that produces on-farm benefits while contributing to broader public sustainability goals. However, cover crops have not been widely adopted in the United States, while the barriers to farmer adoption of cover crops have received little research attention. This study considers the relative importance of the barriers that farmers overcome to adopt cover crops in North Carolina and identifies the resources that enable successful adoption. We used an email survey of NC farmers to gather quantitative data about cover crop use and preferences, supplemented by qualitative interviews with experts on cover crop adoption. Our data show that farmers in NC overcame three broad categories of challenges to adopt cover crops: agronomic, input costs, and knowledge transfer. The level of these challenges varies depending on farm size and income, age of farmer, farming experience, and whether information to plant cover crops was obtained through extension, farmer networks, or private industry. Timing for planting, in particular, challenges farmers regardless of their demographic characteristics. We recommend a holistic policy approach that strengthens diverse knowledge transfer networks, bolsters farmer incentives through existing cost-share programs, and invests in applied research to develop varieties that better complement common cash crop rotations.
  • No Thumbnail Available
    ItemOpen Access
    Supporting Underserved Landowners in the Southeast with Conservation and Economic Goals
    (2022-12-16) Mindlin, Laura
    African American and other “historically underserved” landowners, as defined in the 2008 Farm Bill, have experienced unprecedented rates of agricultural and forest land loss due in large part to discrimination by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). ​​In recent years, the USDA has increased its effort to expand support for historically underserved producers in order to confront and counter this history of discrimination and unequal access to their funding programs. In 2020, the Resourceful Communities program of The Conservation Fund, along with partner organizations in South Carolina and Georgia, received a Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) grant from the USDA to support historically underserved landowners in accessing program funds. This participatory evaluation serves to inform and support that project. Based on online survey data and phone interviews with landowners in the organizations’ three-state network, this report sheds light on barriers landowners face to accessing NRCS conservation program funds; the types of support provided by the organizations that have been most effective in helping landowners to overcome these barriers; and where lie the limits to this type of support, suggesting the need for changes within the NRCS program itself. The study concludes with a formal set of recommendations for the organizations and the NRCS to improve support for historically underserved landowners in the three-state network.