PULLMAN, Wash. — New computer software from Washington State University Cooperative Extension will help farmers decide if they should enroll or re-enroll in the Conservation Reserve Program in March.
“Our software is designed to help producers nationwide analyze the economics of enrolling land in CRP versus returning it to crop production,” said Gayle Willett, WSU extension agricultural economist.
About one million acres of Washington cropland are enrolled in the soil conservation program, according to Willett. About 70 percent of the 10-year contracts farmers have with the government expire in 1997. They have from March 3 to March 28 to make an enrollment decision.
“CRP Economics” is designed to help farmers decide whether to place land coming out of CRP into a new CRP contract, enroll current cropland into CRP or to remove land from CRP under an early out opportunity.
The DOS-based software was developed with a Lotus template and compiled into a stand-alone program requiring no spread sheet program to run it. Minimal knowledge of spreadsheet operation is required.
Cost is $25, plus $4 shipping for one copy, $7 for two copies. Washington residents must pay 7.5 percent sales tax. Make checks, money orders or purchase orders payable to Cooperative Extension Publications. Visa and MasterCard orders also are accepted. Include card number and expiration date in your order. Mail your order to the WSU Bulletin Office, P.O. Box 645912, Pullman, WA 99164-5912. Request MCP0027 “CRP Economics” and specify size of floppy disk you require.
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