The National Cotton Council (NCC) conveyed thanks to President Trump and Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue for authorizing the second round of trade mitigation payments aimed at assisting farmers suffering from damage due to unjustified trade retaliation by foreign nations.
USDA announced that producers of certain commodities, including cotton, now will be eligible to receive Market Facilitation Program (MFP) payments for the second half of their 2018 production. As in the first round, the MFP will provide $0.06/lb. on the remaining half of a producer’s 2018 cotton production (upland and ELS).
Once harvest is complete, producers must certify their production to the local USDA Farm Service Agency office before payments will be made. The signup must be completed by January 15, 2019, with certification due by May 1, 2019. Information and instructions are at www.farmers.gov/mfp. The MFP payments are subject to the existing $900,000 adjusted gross income means test and a separate $125,000 per person payment limit for the eligible crops.
NCC Chairman Ron Craft, a Plains, Texas, ginner, said, “The National Cotton Council is very appreciative of Secretary Perdue and his team at USDA. This tariff mitigation program will help address a portion of the losses cotton producers are facing in the marketplace.”