USDA launches regenerative pilot program

On Dec. 10, 2025, USDA Secretary Rollins along with Health and Human Services Secretary Kennedy and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Administrator Oz made a joint announcement regarding several MAHA updates, including the launch of a regenerative agriculture pilot program at USDA. The program includes a $700 million investment to encourage the adoption of regenerative agricultural practices and will run through two existing NRCS programs the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) and the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP). The practices included will be in three categories: soil health, water quality, and habitat vitality. Producers participating in the Regenerative Pilot Program, producers must:

• Work with NRCS staff, partners, or technical service providers to conduct a whole-farm assessment
• Use at least one primary regenerative management practice
• Agree to perform soil health testing in the first and last year of the contract (at a minimum) to establish a starting baseline and to record the resulting changes

The USDA will also be working to secure additional investments from private companies through the SUSTAINS Act, legislation passed in 2023 that allows NRCS to match public dollars with private funds. 

The NRCS will also establish a Regenerative Agriculture Advisory Council consisting of 15 members—nine regenerative farmers representing production systems, three corporate supply-chain or consumer packaged goods representatives, and three consumer or MAHA representatives.