Can $3 billion persuade Black farmers to trust the Department of Agriculture?

The Biden administration is spending $3.1 billion to convince farmers and ranchers to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and sequester carbon in the ground. It also hopes that the Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities grants will help make amends for a century of systemic discrimination by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) against Black, Native and other "historically underserved" farmers.

The program already faces obstacles, though, amid criticism that many projects receiving the most money are run by giant for-profit companies and major agricultural lobbying groups that don't appear to have a clear plan for how they will serve disadvantaged farmers, though every funded project includes an equity goal. Much smaller grants have gone to projects led by historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) and other minority-serving organizations.

Then there's the central question of trust — or lack thereof. The USDA's history of discriminating against Black farmers and other ethnic and racial minorities — by denying them access to low-interest loans, grants and other assistance — resulted in significant financial losses for those farmers throughout the 20th century and in many cases led to the loss of their land. So there remains a significant lack of trust in the USDA and government programs generally. Some reject anything with the federal government's stamp on it, while others may not even be aware of programs they're eligible for.

While strict measurements are in place for quantifying climate progress, grantees will evaluate their own success or failure on matters of equity. Also, the includes not just ethnic