Conservation Reserve Program now at ‘full strength’ for 2025

Washington, D.C. — Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever on Sept. 17 announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture had accepted 1.78 million acres into the Conservation Reserve Program in 2025.

The announcement by USDA’s Farm Service Agency, which includes general, continuous, and grassland enrollments, will help bolster agriculture, wildlife habitat, hunting opportunities, and rural communities throughout the upland range and beyond.

“For four decades, CRP has delivered unmatched benefits for wildlife habitat, soil health, and water quality,” said Andrew Schmidt, Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever’s director of government affairs. “Thanks to swift action by the Trump administration on a condensed timeline, the program now effectively stands at full enrollment, reflecting its value and standing among the nation’s farmers and ranchers as a critical component of their business operation and the farm safety net.”

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According to FSA, about 25.8 million acres are currently enrolled in CRP, the agency’s flagship conservation program through which landowners, farmers, and ranchers voluntarily convert marginal or unproductive cropland into vegetative cover that prevents erosion, restores wildlife habitat, and – in the case of grassland CRP – enables participants to conserve grasslands while also continuing most grazing and haying practices. The announcement represents the maximum number of acres that could be enrolled this year while staying under the statutory cap of 27 million acres.

“What better way to celebrate CRP’s 40th anniversary and mark four decades of voluntary private lands stewardship than to announce an extremely successful 2025 enrollment for CRP’s many program options?” said Bill Beam, FSA administrator.

Signed into law by President Ronald Reagan in 1985, CRP is one of the most successful voluntary private-lands conservation programs in the United States. Designed to address widespread environmental and economic challenges in the farming sector, CRP emerged as a solution to soil erosion, declining water quality, and farm income instability.

The program has since evolved to provide many conservation, recreation, and economic benefits, while remaining a key piece of the farm safety net.

The American Relief Act of 2025 extended provisions for CRP through Sept. 30, 2025. Without action by Congress to reauthorize the program, FSA will no longer be able to accept new landowners into CRP after this date, although existing contracts will continue to be serviced by the agency. PF & QF urge Congress to pass a bipartisan farm bill in 2025 that extends and strengthens this vital program so it can continue to deliver for farmers, wildlife, and rural America.