December 11th is the deadline for producers to sign up for the 26th edition of the ARC program or the PLC, Price Loss Coverage.
Producers must enroll through a signed contract each year. Previous year’s contracts ended in 2025, but producers now have the option to sign a new multi-year contract for 26 to 31. They just got a check in the mail for this past year when prices were so low the national average price received by producers in 25-26 was $470 per ton.
That compares to a lower price than most peanuts are being sold for. This compares to the year before when peanuts were varying $522 on average ton. The reference price is $630 per ton, so the PLC payment would be the difference between $630 and $160 per ton.
Farmers will only receive 85% of that and it will also be deducted for sequestration of 5.7%. So, farmers will be going to the bank and taking that money to pay off some old debts I’m sure, but thanks to the Big, Beautiful Bill that was passed last year, the peanut farmers have a chance to recover from some of the low prices from last year.
Audio Reporting by Tyron Spearman for Southeast AgNet.