Economic Outcomes of Soil Health and Conservation Practices on U.S. Cropland

The use of soil health and conservation practices has the potential to benefit society and agricultural producers through improvement in soil health, water quality, agricultural productivity, and other ecosystem services. However, there are costs associated with implementing such practices, and the net benefit to the producer and to society depends on how the practice is implemented, the production system, weather, climate, soils, and other variables. In addition, the factors affecting a producer’s decision to implement soil health and conservation practices are complex. These factors include expectations about short- and long-run profitability, the risk and uncertainty associated with the practices, and behavioral factors such as producer willingness to take on risk, peer effects, and stewardship identity. This report provides conceptual framing and background on soil health management, producer decision making, and economic outcomes of soil health and conservation practices; documents trends in the adoption of key soil health and conservation practices on cropland; reviews key findings on the economic effects of soil health and conservation practices; and provides new results on the relationship between selected practices and the yields and costs at the field level and farm-level productivity and technical efficiency.