PCM farmer-partners keeps growing

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. — Farmer participation in the Precision Conservation Management program continues to grow for 2025.

“Participation looks really, really good. We’ve got about 575 farmers engaged through PCM, farming about 600,000 acres that are enrolled into the program and receiving benchmarking annually,” said Greg Goodwin, PCM director.

PCM is a conservation program of the Illinois Corn Growers Association and its partners, applying financial analysis to in-field conservation practices to help farmers adopt practices that impact environmental goals without risking their bottom line, as well as providing financial incentives.

“We offer a unique value, especially while agriculture in general is facing tough economic times. I think we have really good insights we can provide farmers related to management practices in general and specifically around conservation management practices,” Goodwin said.

The program features boots-on-the-ground with eight PCM conservation specialists across a large part of Illinois who provide one-on-one technical support to farmers in their region. PCM is also available in parts of Nebraska and Kentucky.

Farmers who sign up to PCM receive $750 — $500 to start and an additional $250 after 12 months — in compensation for their time.

The are additional cost-share financial incentives through PepsiCo for cover crops, nitrogen reduction and reduced tillage; Farmers for Soil Health’s pay-for-practice cover crop program; and in Illinois counties eligible for the Regional Conservation Partnership Program.

PCM is supported by more than 30 organizations with a vested interest in improving the sustainability of commercial agriculture.

When signing up for the program, the farmer agrees the farm data can be used for benchmarking anonymized aggregate data.

All of the data documented from individual farms is anonymous. The farmer will be the only one to ever see his own data.

One-On-One

Goodwin emphasized boots-on-the-ground is an important part of the program to help farmers along the process.

“The way we work with farmers in the program is through a one-on-one connection with a conservation specialist,” he said.

“These folks work directly with every individual farmer in the program. They will come out to the farm, meet with the farmer, talk through the enrollment process, what it requires in terms of data sharing just in order to be able to participate in the bench-marking side of it, both financial and sustainability-wise.

“The conservation specialist also helps the farmer understand what data may need to be shared related to any incentive programs or conservation programs that want to pay you to do conservation. They will help work with the farmer on all of that.

“We provide the one-on-one assistance and they’re happy to sit down and take as much time as you’d like to go through all of that.”

One example where a conservation specialist can assist is when a farmer who has never planted cover crops decides in late summer to consider the practices. A PCM conservation specialist can meet with the farmer and discuss the process of using cover crops.

“That’s a really great time to consider to make that decision for the next year. Oftentimes, farmers are planting cover crops in the fall just after harvest. Some are now planting them just before harvest with new technology such as drone aerial application for cover crops. It’s an excellent time and our staff are very well up on all of that and happy to walk farmers through that,” Goodwin said.

“Also, they’re happy to help farmers understand what incentive opportunities or cost-share opportunities would be available to help offset the cost.”

Goodwin encourages anyone interested in learning more about PCM to go to the program’s website precisionconservation.org.

“That’s an easy way to find a conservation specialist in your area, if we’re currently in your area. We will hopefully be looking for opportunities in the not so distant future to expand where we’re at, not only in Illinois, but in a couple other states, as well,” he said.

“If anyone is interested in partnerships either from the farmer side or from the private partner side, please reach out to us. We’d be happy to talk to you.”