Valerie Marshall is a law student at Duke University School of Law and guest contributor on this blog.

Supporting the wide adoption of perennial agriculture is one of FBLE’s top 2023 Farm Bill recommendations to support climate change adaptation, risk management, and natural resources conservation. But above all, FBLE posits that investing in perennial agriculture would be one of the best strategies for increasing soil carbon sequestration and bolstering agriculture’s potential for climate change mitigation.

“Perennial agriculture” is the production of crops that are harvested more than once because they live for multiple years. “Annual plants” must be replanted every year. They have shallow roots that do not reinforce soil, and since they are only in the ground for part of the year, leave the soil exposed to erosion between plantings. Types of perennial crops and practices include perennial forage crops, tree crops in agroforestry, and perennial fruits, vegetables, grains, and legumes. Many of these farming methods have proven records of success because they have long been practiced by Black and indigenous farmers around the world. Despite this long history, perennial crops have not received meaningful financial support from the federal government.

The ways Congress supports agriculture production – namely crop insurance, commodity and lending programs, and conservation programs – typically benefit annual agriculture production. Crop insurance, for instance, was designed with annual crops in mind because it is tied to losses during annual years and not a multi-year life span. While perennial crops can theoretically be insured, the policies fail to account for the crop’s entire lifetime productivity or the investment needed to raise the crop prior to its harvest years. For example, fruit tree farmers can choose to either insure the replacement value of the tree or the market value of the annual fruit harvest. The tree’s insurance coverage will only be for a single year, not the full life span of the tree. This lack of a predictable and easily accessible system for crop insurance makes producing perennial crops more risky and less attractive than sticking with annual crops.

Perennial agriculture has many advantages to annual agriculture, particularly as it relates to climate change. Because annual crops have to be replanted each year, they require large amounts of fertilizers and pesticides, do not protect soil and water quality, and do not provide habitat for wildlife. Perennial crops on the other hand have extensive root systems that make them more competitive against weeds and better at capturing water and nutrients. And, because farmers do not have to replant perennials each year, less tillage, fertilizer, and pesticides are used in producing these crops. This longer lifetime also means the soil is protected against erosion, the soil can build organic matter, and carbon is better stored within the soil.

This greater carbon storage means perennials can help with mitigating climate change, which is why FBLE includes shifting to perennial agriculture as a priority climate mitigation strategy. For instance, the adoption of agroforestry practices across the U.S. has the potential to offset up to one-third of U.S. carbon emissions. However, perennial crops not only sequester carbon better than annuals, they are also more resilient to climate change and increased temperatures. This is because perennials protect nutrients better and have greater access to soil moisture. They are also more resilient to environmental or social disruptions that prevent farmers from replanting because perennials do not rely on annual planting.

The advantages of perennial crops are clear, they offer climate mitigation but also a whole host of other environmental and social benefits. Yet there is still a lot of research that needs to be done for perennials to supply the nation’s food. Given the advantages current food policy provides to annual crops over perennials, policy changes in the 2023 Farm Bill are needed to encourage widespread adoption of perennial agriculture. As FBLE points out, “public funds were instrumental in driving the rapid development of annual crops,” and therefore government investment in perennial agriculture research and development will be just as crucial to expand perennial agriculture. To achieve a true shift from an annual crop dominated food system to a perennial agriculture system, FBLE recommends the USDA should develop an entire department-wide strategy to support this transition.


The views and opinions expressed on the FBLE Blog are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of FBLE. While we review posts for accuracy, we cannot guarantee the reliability and completeness of any legal analysis presented; posts on this Blog do not constitute legal advice. If you discover an error, please reach out to contact@farmbilllaw.org.