Second Round of CFAP To Go To Ag Producers

The USDA announced on Sept. 18, following a President Trump campaign rally on Sept. 17 in Wisconsin, an additional $14 billion is available for agricultural producers who continue to face market disruptions and associated costs due to COVID-19. The funds are being made available from the Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) Charter Act and CARES Act to support row crops, livestock, specialty crops, dairy, aquaculture and many additional commodities. Payments will be made for three categories of commodities including Price Trigger Commodities, which are major commodities that meet a minimum five percent price decline over a specified period of time; Flat-Rate Crops, which are crops that either do not meet the five-percent decline trigger or do not have data available to calculate a price change; and Sales Commodities which include speciality crops, aquaculture, nursery crops and floriculture as well as other commodities not included in the price trigger and flat-rate categories.

In developing this program, the USDA incorporated improvements based upon stakeholder engagement and public feedback in order to better address the needs of impacted farmers and ranchers. One piece of feedback that was considered was a letter written by members of Congress on Sept. 2 representing wheat-producing states explaining the “deteriorating economic conditions being experienced by wheat farmers across the country.” Senator Tester, Senator Daines and Representative Gianforte joined 19 other Senators and 25 Representatives in writing the letter asking for “resources available through the CARES Act to provide support for wheat farmers the include assistance for all classes of wheat.”

Under the first round of CFAP, commodities generally qualified for payments if their price had declined by at least five percent for a specified time period, generally between January and April 15. In the wheat sector, it only provided assistance for hard red spring and durum wheat farmers, which accounted for only 30 percent of 2019 production. This new round of CFAP payments will include all of Montana’s wheat and barley farmers to receive assistance on their 2020 production. The five percent price decline will also continue to be one of the three methods used to determine eligibility and the time period is extended from April 15 to the end of the year.

On Sept. 24, CFAP 1 was updated to include all barley as an eligible commodity as only malting barley was previously considered. Price risk as of Jan. 15 is still a requirement so barley under contract with a set price as of Jan. 15 still remains ineligible, however is eligible for CFAP 2. If a producer submitted a CFAP 1 application for barley (other than malting) and the application was disapproved, the producer must submit a new application along with a written explanation with reasons for the late filing to their local FSA county office for review and action. For producers who submitted an application and was paid for CFAP 1, but also has barley (other than malting) that is now considered eligible, the producer does not need to submit a new application as the application only needs to be amended by contacting the FSA county office. For those who are not eligible under the price risk requirement, CFA

The additional assistance for producers was well received by various organizations. Montana Grain Growers Association President Vince Mattson stated “USDA’s announcement that all wheat classes will be included in CFAP 2.0 is very gratifying. MGGA has been pleading wheat’s case for months, and now Montana wheat and barley producers can get the relief and assistance they deserve. I would like to thank the MGGA and National Association of Wheat Growers board and staff for their persistence in perusing this issue. A huge thanks also goes to Montana Senators Jon Tester and Steve Daines, and Congressman Greg Gianforte for their strong support of this effort.”

Montana Farm Bureau President echoed the sentiment stating “I know Montana farmers and ranchers will be pleased to see the addition of two crops that failed to make the first round – alfalfa, sugar beets, hemp and all classes of wheat. Even though some of the concerns regarding food supplies have diminished, farmers and ranchers are still experiencing hardships due to poor commodity prices, weather events and trade imbalances. This additional CFAP support will ensure shelves stayed stocked at the grocery store and food is on your table.”

The National Farmers Union President Rob Larew has conveyed appreciation for the financial support while also urging the USDA to address disparities in the initial distribution of the assistance. “The first round of funding, though greatly appreciated, was not without its flaws; not only did it favor large farms over smaller ones, it also sent millions of dollars to foreign-owned operations and excluded some farmers entirely. With Congressional oversight, we ask that USDA rectify these issues and ensure that payments are commensurate with demonstrated need,” Larew stated.

Producers can apply for CFAP 2 at USDA’s Farm Service Agency county offices through Dec. 11. Additional information and application forms can be found at farmers.gov/cfap. Documentation to support the producer’s application and certification may be requested. For existing FSA customers, including those who participated in CFAP 1, many documents are likely already on file, so producers should check with FSA county office to see if any of the forms need to be updated.