DES MOINES, Iowa (IAWA) – At a time when the market is demanding more beef production and central Iowans want cleaner water, Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig announced a conservation program expansion that could meet both needs.

On Tuesday, speaking at the Iowa State Fair, Naig said the popular Cattle and Conservation Working Lands Program will expand into 22 counties in the Greater Des Moines watershed.

What began as a pilot program in Taylor County in southern Iowa in 2016 will invest $1.5 million over the next five years in the expanded area that’s upstream from Des Moines.

The cost-share program supports cattle and other livestock producers in converting under-performing or highly erodible acres of row crops into pasture and hay ground. This provides land and forage to support the growth of the U.S. beef herd, while reducing soil erosion and improving water quality.

“The Cattle and Conservation Working Lands Program is truly a win-win, balancing productivity while improving Iowa’s water quality and soil health,” said Secretary Naig. “By converting underperforming cropland into grazing land for cattle and other livestock, we can put every acre to its best use and keep working lands working. It’s the right thing to do from an environmental perspective and it creates opportunities for young and beginning farmers, generates new revenue for landowners, and makes more land available to grow the cattle herd.”

The program of the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship (IDALS) will make a one-time payment of $290 per acre for conversion to hay production or $1000 an acre to establish pasture. Each of those incentives requires a 5-year commitment of the landowner to keep that land in that practice, Naig said.

Naig was joined by Bryan Whaley, CEO of the Iowa Cattlemen’s Association, and cattle producers from Calhoun, Pocahontas and Webster counties at the Cattlemen’s Beef Quarters on the fairgrounds.

Whaley said the program could play a role in increasing beef production in Iowa.

“If you think about Iowa, we have productive pasture land, we have forage and feed resources. We have strong crop, and livestock integration and the infrastructure needed to support that growth,” Whaley said.

Bill Fields, a cow-calf producer from Greene County, said the conservation program could also benefit young farmers by opening up more acres for beef production.

“Having  access to additional pastures and hay ground gives you the opportunity to extend summer grazing and gives you the forage to winter more cattle,” Fields said.

Greene County and Calhoun County will also get two new program coordinators, based on strong interest in the program there, Naig said.

The expanded cattle conservation program is part of a much larger bipartisan “farm to faucet” bill passed by the Iowa Legislature last year. It commits $320 million to improving water quality and conservation over 12 years.

The cattle producers are also strong supporters of land stewardship and water quality, Whaley said.

“As Iowa producers, we live here, raise our families here, and depend on these same water resources; we rely on clean water just as much as anyone,” Whaley said. “This is about building on the good work already happening on Iowa farms and giving producers the tools and support to do even more to improve our land and water.”

The Cattle and Conservation Working Lands Program started as a pilot project in Taylor County in 2016, then expanded to include Adams, Carroll, Cherokee, Guthrie, Ida, Page and Woodbury counties. Leveraging the bi-partisan Farm to Faucet funding passed during the 2026 Legislative session, this farmer-led conservation program is once again expanding to Audubon, Boone, Buena Vista, Calhoun, Clay, Dallas, Dickinson, Emmet, Greene, Hamilton, Hancock, Humboldt, Kossuth, Palo Alto, Pocahontas, Polk, Sac, Webster, Winnebago and Wright counties.

To date, IDALS has six project coordinators who have helped enroll more than 1,100 producers in the program. More than 16,000 acres of less-productive agricultural land have been converted from row crops to pasture and hay. Participating producers have also established more than 195,000 acres of cover crops, which help hold soil in place, filter nitrates and provide forage for livestock.

Producers in eligible counties who would like to enroll in the Cattle and Conservation Working Lands Program can visit their local USDA Service Center or visit costshare.iowaagriculture.gov.

Full press release can be found on IDALS website.

Published on Wed, Aug 19, 2026