President Donald J. Trump and U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced on Sept. 17 the U.S. Department of Agriculture will implement an extension of the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program.
The original CFAP only covered assistance to hard red spring and durum wheat farmers, which left many growers without coverage. As part of the CFAP 2, officials have announced an additional $14 billion for agriculture producers who continue to face market disruptions and associated costs because of COVID-19, including growers of all classes of wheat.
“America’s agriculture communities are resilient, but still face many challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic,” Perdue said.
“President Trump is once again demonstrating his commitment to ensure America’s farmers and ranchers remain in business to produce the food, fuel, and fiber America needs to thrive. We listened to feedback received from farmers, ranchers and agricultural organizations about the impact of the pandemic on our nations’ farms and ranches, and we developed a program to better meet the needs of those impacted.”
In early September, U.S. Rep. Frank Lucas, an Oklahoma Republican, sent a letter to Perdue urging that all wheat classes be eligible for CFAP. The bipartisan letter was led by Lucas and was signed by 25 other members of the U.S. House of Representatives.
“America’s wheat growers are resilient, but many still face unprecedented challenges through no fault of their own,” Lucas said. “The coronavirus pandemic has weakened market positions across all commodities throughout the nation and, whether you’re a wheat farmer who wrapped up harvest in May or those looking ahead to harvest in the coming weeks, CFAP 2 will help those weather the uncertainties of the pandemic.”
The USDA will use funds being made available from the Commodity Credit Corporation Charter Act and CARES Act to support row crops, livestock, specialty crops, dairy, aquaculture and many additional commodities. USDA has incorporated improvements in CFAP 2 based from stakeholder engagement and public feedback to better meet the needs of impacted farmers and ranchers.
Producers can apply for CFAP 2 at USDA’s Farm Service Agency county offices. This program provides financial aid that gives producers the ability to absorb increased marketing costs related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Producers will be compensated for ongoing market disruptions and assisted with the associated marketing costs. To learn more about the program, visit www.farmers.gov/cfap.
Lacey Newlin can be reached at 620-227-1871 or lnewlin
