In early June, the organization sued the USDA alongside other groups that lost funding. Now, their legal team is amending the complaint to reference the likely recent cancellation. (Agroecology Commons has not yet received an official termination letter, so as of right now, the legal team told Civil Eats that “the amended complaint will make reference to the Secretary’s stated intention to terminate a grant that resembles a grant Agroecology Commons has, and that officially terminating such a grant would be unlawful in the way that other terminations at issue in the suit are.”)

Agroecology Common’s leadership said that while Rollins framed the cancellation as a victory for American farmers, their project was contributing to a more diverse, resilient farm landscape through land access and farmer training at a time when young and new farmers are desperately needed.

The Land, Capital, and Market Access Program, created initially out of the Biden-era American Rescue Plan, was championed by the National Young Farmers Coalition. Its members are now pushing to get a permanent version authorized in the next farm bill, and the measure has bipartisan support.

Last week, when Rollins announced the terminations of contracts based on DEI criteria, the coalition posted an image on Instagram in response that read, “Hey USDA, Young, BIPOC, and LGBTQ+ producers ARE American farmers.”

At this point, it is unclear whether other grants in the same program will also be canceled, given that all of them specify serving underserved groups, including Black, Indigenous, and immigrant farmers. As a result, the other awardees are left in limbo, said Amanda Koehler, the Young Farmers’ land policy associate director, leaving them fearful that their awards are next.

“The consequences of the funding freeze and uncertainty have already been devastating for LCM awardees and projects,” she said. The termination of this funding will further harm the livelihoods of young, BIPOC, LGBTQ+, and other underserved producers—and poses a serious threat to the future of our farm and food system.”