Additional commodities added to CFAP
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced Aug. 11 that additional commodities will be covered by the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program in response to public comments and data. The added commodities include watermelons and crops such as peppermint, green onions, pistachios and walnuts. All sheep are now eligible; previously only lambs less than one year old were eligible. Fresh chicken eggs are eligible. Duck eggs are ineligible as are shelled or dried egg products.
Additionally, the U.S. Department of Agriculture is extending the deadline to apply for the program to Sept. 11, and producers with approved applications will receive their final payment.
Payment for certain categories of floriculture products are also now eligible, according to eligibility criteria, made retroactive going back to the onset of coronavirus in March. Growers may be eligible to be paid for a percentage of the wholesale value of flower crops that were either delivered but spoiled and unpaid for, or never delivered—due, for example, to weddings being canceled because of COVID-19.
The payments will be made directly, but they are subject to limitation rules. They are not designed to make growers whole, said J. Latrice Hill, national director of outreach for the Farm Service Agency and one of the presenters, who noted the program could help them keep going. There is a payment cap of $250,000 per person or entity.
The USDA explained the new commodities and eligibility criteria in an Aug. 19 webinar titled “Coronavirus Food Assistance Program Producer Webinar: Additional Eligible Commodities Added.” The webinar has been posted to the USDA website, and includes presentations of detailed examples of various application scenarios. Information is available at farmers.gov/coronavirus/service-center-status.
“President Trump is standing with America’s farmers and ranchers to ensure they get through this pandemic and continue to produce enough food and fiber to feed America and the world. That is why he authorized this $16 billion of direct support in the CFAP program and today we are pleased to add additional commodities eligible to receive much needed assistance,” said Secretary Perdue. “CFAP is just one of the many ways USDA is helping producers weather the impacts of the pandemic. From deferring payments on loans to adding flexibilities to crop insurance and reporting deadlines, USDA has been leveraging many tools to help producers.”
On July 27, Perdue announced a third round of the Farmers to Families Food Box Program purchases, with distributions set to begin by Sept. 1 and continue until Oct. 31. Those purchases will spend the balance of the $3 billion authorized for the Food Box program. To date, more than 46 million food boxes have been authorized and delivered.
David Murray can be reached at [email protected].
