The U-S Department of Agricutlture will save billions of dollars as millions of acres of land return to production. The Freedom to Farm legislation passed last year requires millions of acres to be removed from the Conservation Reserve program. The program was established in the mid-80's to protect land from wind and water erosion and to help farmers through tough times. As ten year contracts begin to expire farmers are forced to decide if they're eligible to renew for another decade of guaranteed payments or if they'll farm the land and take advantage of higher prices for crops. Minnesota Public Radio's Cara Hetland talked to two Lincoln county farmers about their plans: Minnesota's Lincoln county has the most Conservation Reserve Program acres per county in the state. 50 thousand acres lie untouched by the farmers who chose to turn it into conservation land in exchan