INDIANAPOLIS – A desire to drastically cut federal spending by the Trump administration could threaten a program helping farmers in Indiana and other states interested in planting cover crops.

A pause has been placed on a $500,000 grant utilized by the Indiana Agriculture Nutrient Alliance (IANA).

Ben Wicker, executive director of IANA, said a hold was placed on those dollars in mid-February as a result of the ongoing review of federal spending undertaken by the new administration.

Wicker said IANA has three years left on the five-year grant, which provides $100,000 annually toward the program.

“We’re waiting to see what the results of those reviews will be,” he said.

The grant, funded by USDA, is administered through the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation.

Wicker said IANA uses the grant to help agronomists assist farmers interested in planting cover crops in deciding what to grow during the offseason, and in navigating the process involved in getting started.

He said farmers are also lined up with potential customers in the private sector like utility companies willing to compensate them for the greenhouse gas emissions their cover crops absorb from their generators.

In addition, Wicker said the grant helps offset the operating expenses of planting cover crops by $25 per acre the first year; $15 per acre the second year and $10 per acre for the third and final year of the cost-share agreement with farmers.

Wicker said federal dollars have also been paused on programs directly offered by other agriculture agencies with help from the support provided by IANA.

“There’s uncertainty right now as far as what the ultimate fate of those programs will be,” he said.

The funds provided by the cover crop incentive grant represent about one-third of the annual operating budget of IANA, formed as an independent agency in 2017 through a partnership with a number of major farm-related organizations and funds from their check-off programs.

The groups affiliated with IANA represent producers of corn, soybeans, pork, beef, poultry and milk. Indiana Farm Bureau and the Agri-business Council of Indiana also played roles behind the founding of IANA.

Wicker said about 50 percent of their IANA’s funding is from USDA and the Natural Resources Conservation Service under USDA.

“We’re not a government agency ourselves but we work with many of the different agency partners and the private industry folks as well,” he said.

Wicker said he’s not sure how long it will take to complete the federal spending review but expects to know more about the future of the cover crop incentive grant within the next 30 days.

Regardless of the outcome, he anticipates IANA will continue with its mission of making sure farmers have the best information possible for making decisions to help the future viability of their operations and improve water quality.

He said the group’s efforts, though, could be scaled back or shift with any reductions in federal funding.

“We’re kind of in a holding pattern of seeing where things shake out. It’s way too early at this point in my estimation for me to say what that long term outlook really looks like,” he said.