American Farmland Trust

History

American Farmland Trust (AFT) was founded in 1980 by farmers and conservationists including Margaret (Peggy) Rockefeller, Patrick Noonan and William K. Reilly. Norm Berg, former Chief of the Soil Conservation Service (now the Natural Resources Conservation Service), was an AFT senior advisor for 25 years. Otto C. Doering III, a member of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, won the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize

Jim Moseley, former USDA Deputy Secretary, serve on AFT's board of directors.

AFT was one of the first agricultural land trusts in the nation and is the only one with a national scope. In 1985, AFT protected Wolfe's Neck Farm with an agricultural conservation easement.

In 2000, AFT launched Smart Growth America, a national coalition aimed at reforming development practices to support sustainable land use and preserve working farmland. Initially created under AFT's umbrella, the initiative has brought together stakeholders from environmental groups to urban planners.

AFT helped create state and local land trusts throughout the country including the Colorado Cattlemen's Agricultural Land Trust in 1995 and the Texas Agricultural Land Trust in 2006.

In 2012, with the Electric Power Research Institute and an expert advisory committee, AFT launched the first and largest water quality credit trading program in the United States to improve water quality in the Ohio River basin. The program received the U.S. Water Prize in 2015.

AFT leads Farm to Institution New York State (FINYS) which connects New York farms to publicly funded institutions in the state.

AFT promotes farming practices that improve soil health as a way to bring about multiple environmental benefits including carbon sequestration. In 2017, AFT became the first United States Climate Alliance Impact Partner in an effort to implement policies and programs that "sequester carbon and reduce greenhouse gases on agricultural lands while improving farm resiliency and productivity."

In 2020, AFT launched the Farmer Relief Fund, which provided grants of up to $1,000 to small and mid-size direct-market producers with demonstrated need due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. In the same year, AFT became a national sponsor of the Leopold Conservation Award Program, which recognizes the outstanding achievements of more than 100 voluntary conservationists annually.

Federal policy

AFT has helped shape U.S. farm bills since the 1980s. AFT published the policy document Soil Conservation in America: What Do We Have to Lose? in 1984 and was a member of the conservation coalition that played a significant role in the development of the Food Security Act of 1985 which established the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP). AFT's work as a proponent of the expansion of government-funded agriculture programs led to the passing of the 2002 Farm Bill and the authorization of the Farm and Ranch Lands Protection Program (succeeded by the Agriculture Conservation Easement Program, or ACEP) and the Environmental Quality Incentives Program. AFT advocated to increase funding for the ACEP by supporting the passing of the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 which would increase the program's funding by $2 billion over the span of 10 years.

References

References

1. (June 2025). "Farm and Ranch Lands Protection Program".
2. (March 27, 1996). "Margaret Rockefeller, 80, Backer of Farm and Conservation Cause". [[The New York Times]].
3. (May 2017). "Nature's Burdens: Conservation and American Politics, the Reagan Era to the Present". Utah State University Press.
4. (April 7, 2008). "Farewell to an Ag Giant – Norm Berg Was Busy Doing Important Work Until the End". Agweek.
5. "Otto C Doering III".
6. (March 21, 2014). "STUDENTS BRAINSTORM TO COMBAT CLIMATE CHANGE". [[Post-Tribune (Indiana newspaper).
7. "SMART GROWTH AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT: HEARING BEFORE THE COMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENT AND PUBLIC WORKS UNITED STATES SENATE ONE HUNDRED SEVENTH CONGRESS SECOND SESSION...".
8. "A Brief History of Land Trusts in Cattle Country: Cowboys and Conservation: A Short History of and Reflections on the Dramatic Growth of Private Land Conservation in Western Ranching". Lincoln Institute of Land Policy.
9. "About – Texas Agricultural Land Trust".
10. "Protecting ecosystems by engaging farmers in water quality trading: Case study from the Ohio River basin". Soil and Water Conservation: A Celebration of 75 Years.
11. (2012). "Ohio River Basin States Launch Novel Nutrient Trading Pilot Program". Inside Washington Publishers.
12. "About FINYS".
13. "Impact Partnership".
14. "Farmer Relief Fund".
15. (July 15, 2020). "American Farmland Trust becomes national sponsor of Leopold Conservation Award Program". The Fence Post.
16. "Federal Policy".
17. (January 2, 2006). "Conference on Leveraging Farm Policy for Conservation: Passage of the 1985 Farm Bill". United States Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service.
18. (September 8, 2000). "SENATE HEARING before the SUBCOMMITTEE ON FORESTRY, CONSERVATION, AND RURAL REVITALIZATION, OF THE COMMITTEE ON AGRICULTURE, NUTRITION, AND FORESTRY UNITED STATES SENATE". US Government Printing Office.
19. (February 28, 2001). "SENATE HEARING before the COMMITTEE ON AGRICULTURE, NUTRITION, AND FORESTRY UNITED STATES SENATE". US Government Printing Office.
20. (June 2025). "Farm and Ranch Lands Protection Program".
21. (June 25, 2018). "House farm bill provides funding for important conservation & beginning farmer programs". Morning Ag Clips.