Farming with Trees: Reforming U.S. Farm Policy to Expand Agroforestry and Mitigate Climate Change

This Article proposes a comprehensive set of policy reforms designed to encourage the expansion of agroforestry systems, including increased funding for agroforestry research, additional financing options for agroforestry practices within existing conservation programs, and land-ownership assistance for agroforestry farmers. Agroforestry refers to the incorporation of productive trees and shrubs into cropland or pastureland. In contrast with coping strategies like no-till and cover cropping and incremental strategies like adopting drought-resistant crops, agroforestry is a transformational adaptation strategy to climate change. Agroforestry systems conservatively sequester 10-20 times more carbon per acre than the most promising climate-friendly practices for annual crops like no-till and cover cropping. Adopting agroforestry practices on just 10% of U.S. agricultural land would offset an estimated 34% of the country’s emissions from fossil fuel combustion and significantly reduce agricultural water pollution, while offering economic advantages like greater crop resiliency, additional sources of income, lower input costs, and higher profitability on a per acre basis. Barriers include the widespread perception that agriculture and trees are incompatible, as well as the lack of long-term financial support in the public and private sectors, land tenure, research, and technical assistance. Decades-old federal farm crop insurance, credit, and subsidy programs designed for annual commodity crops fail to support farming with trees, which requires longer term planning and support.