U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue today announced the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) will provide additional assistance through the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP), expanding eligibility for some agricultural producers and commodities as well as updating payments to accurately compensate some producers who already applied for the program. Producers who are now eligible and those who need to modify existing applications due to these updates can contact USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) between January 19 and February 26. Contract producers of broilers, pullets, laying hens, chicken eggs (breeders), turkeys and swine who suffered a drop in revenue in 2020 as compared to their 2019 revenue because of the pandemic now are eligible for assistance. Producers could receive up to 80% of their revenue loss, subject to the availability of funds.
Eligible producers must:
- have raised broilers, pullets, layers, chicken eggs, turkeys, hogs, or pigs under a contract in 2019 and 2020.
- demonstrate a drop in revenue for the period from January 1, 2020, through December 27, 2020, as compared to the period from January 1, 2019, through December 27, 2019.
- provide a copy of their contract and documentation to support the information provided on their application, if requested by FSA.
NCC was a leading advocate for including these funds in the most recent COVID-19 stimulus bill passed by Congress in late December. “We are pleased that after several months of discussions this has come to fruition and our hard working chicken growers that were impacted by COVID-19 will finally get some relief,” said NCC President Mike Brown.
Payments are based on eligible sales, and the payment calculation in the updated rule includes crop insurance indemnities, Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP), and Wildfire and Hurricane Indemnity Program – Plus (WHIP+) payments.
Newly eligible producers who need to submit a CFAP 2 application can do so between January 19 and February 26, 2021, by contacting their local USDA Service Center. New applicants can also obtain one-on-one support with applications by calling 877-508-8364. To learn more about this additional assistance, visit farmers.gov/cfap.
