A programme (not used since the late 1970s) under which farmers are required to set aside a certain percentage of their total planted acreage and devote this land to approved conservation uses (such as grasses, legumes, and small grain which is not allowed to mature) in order to be eligible for nonrecourse loans and deficiency payments. Set-aside acreage was based on the number of acres a farmer actually plants in the programme year as opposed to being based on prior crop years. The authority for set-aside was eliminated by the FAIR Act of 1996.