By Clint Thompson The Sunbelt Ag Expo is a week away for those interested in attending the event, scheduled for Oct. 18-20, in Moultrie, Georgia. Various crop organizations will be in attendance, including the Georgia Cotton Commission. Executive director Taylor Sills invites producers to stop by and say hello during any one of the three days. “The Sunbelt Ag Expo …
Georgia Peanut Bank Week Highlighted Throughout State
By Clint Thompson The Georgia Peanut Commission is partnering with the Georgia Bankers Association this week to promote the Georgia Peanut Bank Week. Financial institutions and banks across Georgia will pay tribute to the state’s peanut producers. Justin Odom, project coordinator in farm and field services at the Georgia Peanut Commission, discussed what this week means for the state’s peanut …
Report on Specialty Crops in USDA Programs
A report from USDA’s Economic Research Service shows that the amount of specialty crops enrolled in federal risk management programs has nearly doubled in the last ten years. The value of specialty crops insured by FCIP (i.e., liabilities) increased from about $12 billion in 2011 to about $21 billion in 2020 (not adjusted for inflation). The States with the most policies are …
USDA Expedites Hurricane Ian Disaster Recovery
In order to expedite Hurricane Ian disaster recovery, the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in Florida has announced it is issuing early start waivers in Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) emergency declaration counties, to allow commencement of key conservation practices prior to conservation program contract approval. Juan C. Hernandez, Florida NRCS State Conservationist, told Southeast AgNet they can provide payments, through conservation program …
USDA-NRCS Providing Conservation Programs in the New Fiscal Year
Efforts to streamline and build upon USDA Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) programs and services have been a part of preparations as the new fiscal year is underway. NRCS Chief, Terry Cosby, discusses how his agency has been studying how to build upon traditional conservation programs while serving many who would like to apply. To learn more about how the …
Lauderdale County, Alabama, Designated as Primary Natural Disaster Area
This Secretarial natural disaster designation allows the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA) to extend much-needed emergency credit to producers recovering from natural disasters through emergency loans. Emergency loans can be used to meet various recovery needs including the replacement of essential items such as equipment or livestock, reorganization of a farming operation or the refinance of …
Senators Propose Funding Increase for Marketing Programs
A group of Senators recently introduced legislation to increase annual funding for USDA International Marketing Programs, the Market Access Program (MAP) and the Foreign Market Development Program (FMD). U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF) President and CEO Dan Halstrom says while MAP and FMD have received steady funding from Congress and the programs have strong, bipartisan support on Capitol Hill, MAP funding has remained static since …
USDA Call Center Available to Assist Agricultural Producers with Hurricane Ian Recovery
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has established a call center that is available to assist agricultural producers with Hurricane Ian recovery. Florida agricultural operations have been significantly impacted by the hurricane, so for producers located in counties where the USDA Farm Service Agency’s (FSA) local infrastructure has been impacted, the agency has established state-specific toll-free information lines where producers …
Two Major Conservation Program Sign-up Deadlines in Florida is Friday
Here’s a reminder from the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in Florida that the deadline to apply for two of its major conservation programs is Friday, October 7. They are the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) and the Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP). The original September 2 deadline, previously extended to September 30, was extended to this Friday to allow farmers, ranchers, and non-industrial private forestland …
USDA-NRCS in Georgia Announces Two Program Sign-Ups
The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in Georgia has announced that two program sign-ups are underway. NRCS and partner groups have a sign-up for four regionally-focused conservation projects being funded through the Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP). Each project has unique objectives and boundaries, but the ranking date for all eligible producers in these project areas to apply is November 4, 2022. To learn …