Mid‑Missouri farmer Dan Kuebler, a longtime producer of vegetables, pickles and fermented foods, faced the prospect of his 30‑acre Ashland farm being subdivided for housing as nearby towns grew. Determined to keep the land in farming, Kuebler worked with the Greenbelt Land Trust of Mid‑Missouri to attach a conservation easement to his property deed.
How an easement works
The easement legally binds current and future owners to keep the land in agricultural use, prohibiting subdivision or sale for residential or commercial development. “You cannot subdivide it, you cannot sell it off for residential development or commercial development,” explained Nick Shapiro, executive director of the trust.
Land trusts like Greenbelt oversee compliance, ensuring the easement is upheld in perpetuity. The program offers a way for farmers to protect their legacy while receiving compensation for the reduction in market value caused by the development restrictions.
Federal support under President Trump
The Agricultural Conservation Easement Program – Agricultural Land Easements (ACEP‑ALE) was expanded by President Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill, raising annual funding from about $450 million to $650 million. The money flows through nonprofit land trusts, state agencies and tribal governments to purchase development rights from willing landowners.
While the federal program has preserved more than 1 million acres since 2014, Missouri has seen limited use—no farmland in the state is currently under a federal easement. Experts attribute this to a shortage of active land‑trust organizations and limited awareness among farmers.
Economic realities
Securing an easement can reduce a property’s market value by up to 65 percent, depending on location and the stringency of the restrictions. “Whenever you go to sell your property, it’s going to be appraised at best, highest dollar – they call it best use in the industry,” said Josh Wright of the American Farmland Trust. “Unfortunately, it’s probably considered the worst use.”
Even with federal payments, the compensation often falls short of the potential profit from commercial development. “Even those payments would struggle to keep up with the demand and the price of land for commercial development,” noted Eric Gramlich of the Ozark Land Trust.
Local impact and future outlook
For Kuebler, the easement safeguards his farm’s legacy and supports his belief that farming is a cornerstone of Mid‑Missouri’s culture and heritage. “The older farmers who are looking to get out might be willing to take less than top dollar if they know there is someone who really wants to take their land and run it in a way that matches their values,” Shapiro said.
Advocates hope that increased federal funding and streamlined processes by the Natural Resources Conservation Service will encourage more Missouri landowners to consider easements. As development pressure continues, tools like conservation easements offer a viable path for preserving the state’s agricultural landscape for future generations.
Original reporting: Wisconsin Watch — read the source article.
