USDA grants $600,000 for ISA and Indiana State Department of Agriculture program

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. (April 9, 2020) — The Indiana Soybean Alliance (ISA), in partnership with the Indiana Corn Marketing Council (ICMC) and Indiana State Department of Agriculture, (ISDA) received a $600,000 grant for the INfield Advantage program through the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service.

INfield Advantage is a proactive, collaborative opportunity for farmers to collect and understand personalized, on-farm data to optimize their management practices to ultimately improve their farm profitability and benefit the environment. This program is a partnership between ISA, the Indiana Corn Marketing Council, the Indiana State Department of Agriculture, Purdue Extension county offices and local Soil and Water Conservation Districts. The USDA grant will allow the program to expand partnerships to include certified crop advisors, co-ops and ag retailers.

“The INfield Advantage program shows how great partnerships can be in agriculture, and this program is something we are very proud to work on with our partners and Indiana farmers,” said ISDA Director Bruce Kettler. “This funding will ensure that our Hoosier farmers are able to connect, learn more about their farms and receive personalized and field-specific data.”

This funding will be used to provide farmer participants with soil health assessments, soil chemical tests, and tissue samples in the fields enrolled in tillage, cover crop or nutrient management trials. Funding will provide enrollment into sustainability benchmarking tools such as Land O’Lakes, Truterra. Agronomic technical assistance and incentive payments to farmer participants is available, too.

“Indiana’s soybean and corn checkoffs are charged with conducting research and educating farmers about the best practices for producing a crop,” said ISA Board Chairman David Rodibaugh, who is a soybean farmer from Rensselaer, Ind. “Our INfield Advantage program provides very good information that farmers can apply to their own farms to improve their bottom line in a more earth-friendly manner.”

These partnerships between state agencies, federal partners and Indiana farmers are crucial for improving Indiana agriculture and increasing soil conservation. For more information or to sign up for the INfield Advantage program, visit www.infieldadvantage.org or contact ISA Production and Environment Manager Ariel Kittle at akittle@indianasoybean.com

*****

About ISDA: The Indiana State Department of Agriculture (ISDA) was established as a separate state agency by the Legislature in 2005. Administratively, ISDA reports to Lt. Gov. Suzanne Crouch, who also serves as Indiana’s Secretary of Agriculture and Rural Development. Major responsibilities include advocacy for Indiana agriculture at the local, state and federal level, managing soil conservation programs, promoting economic development and agricultural innovation, serving as a regulatory ombudsman for agricultural businesses, and licensing grain firms throughout the state.

The Indiana Soybean Alliance works to enhance the viability of Indiana soybean farmers through the effective and efficient investment of soybean checkoff funds and the development of sound policies that protect and promote the interest of Indiana soybean farmers. The ISA is working to build new markets for soybeans through the promotion of grain marketing, livestock, aquaculture, production research, biofuels, environmental programs, and new uses for soybeans. ISA is led by an elected farmer board that directs investments of the soybean checkoff funds on behalf of more than 28,000 Indiana soybean farmers and promotes policies on behalf of the nearly 600 dues paying members. Learn more at www.indianasoybean.com

The Indiana Corn Marketing Council was established by the Indiana General Assembly to promote the interest of corn growers in the state and manage corn checkoff funds. The Council is composed of 17 voting farmer directors and seven appointed industry, and government representatives who direct investments of corn checkoff funds on behalf of more than 28,000 Indiana corn farmers. The ICMC is working to build new markets for corn through the promotion of grain marketing, livestock, production research, ethanol, and environmental programs. Learn more at www.incorn.org

This communications was funded with Indiana soybean and Indiana corn checkoff dollars.