Measuring the Climate Benefits and Emissions of Prescribed Sheep Grazing, and Promoting the Consumption of Climate-Smart Lamb

The American Lamb Board’s (ALB) project plans to measure and report carbon sequestration, soil health and other greenhouse gas benefits, and associated ecosystem services provided by prescribed sheep grazing on four different pilot demonstration sites throughout the United States and market the resulting climate-smart lamb products. Underserved producers are planned to receive funding for implementing climate-smart practices and technical assistance with farm plan development, LCA estimates, and reporting and verification.

In order to be eligible for the payment, a producer must:

• Establish Farm Records with the USDA Farm Service Agency

• Complete an AD-2047 (Customer Data Worksheet to facilitate the collection of customer data for Business Partner Record)

• Certify highly erodible land conservation and wetland conservation via Form AD-1026

• Certify that they are not a foreign person

• Certify that they are not receiving funds for the same practices on the same acreage from other government programs such as EQIP

• Agree to share farm data to calculate emissions, and to calculate carbon sequestration associated with implemented climate-smart management practices

Applicants that qualify as small or underserved will be given priority.  Underserved producers include beginning farmers, socially disadvantaged farmers, veteran farmers, limited resource farmers, and women farmers. Small farms are generally those with less than $350,000 in annual gross cash farm income.

Producers will receive up to $7,000 for participating in the program. They will also receive technical assistance to implement climate-smart practices on their farm. Additional premiums may be available for climate-smart products produced by participants.

Producers will receive one-third of the payment upon completion of the contract and the remaining two-thirds once the technical assistant validates that all implementation requirements have been met.

The application will be live on September 1, 2024. Producers will be notified by December 15, 2024 if they have been accepted and the program will begin January 1, 2025.