WESTMINSTER — The acronyms-to-English programs offered in addition to the low-interest Emergency Loan Program by the U.S. Department of Agriculture range in award amount, eligibility, and deadlines.
U.S. Deputy Secretary of Agriculture Kathleen Merrigan and USDA State Executive Director Robert G. Paquin listed a few of the department's relief programs for farmers during a recent tour of Windham County.
SURE: The Supplemental Revenue Assistance Payments Program covers crop revenue losses only in those locally-declared disaster areas by the Agriculture Secretary, or in cases where the overall production loss exceeds 50 percent. Approved crop insurance or noninsured crop disaster assistance must be in place to qualify.
NAP: The Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program provides financial assistance to eligible producers affected by drought, flood, hurricane, or other natural disasters. NAP covers non-insurable crop losses and planting prevented by disasters.
Eligible crops include commercial crops and other agricultural commodities produced for food, including livestock feed or fiber for which the catastrophic level of crop insurance is unavailable.
Also eligible for NAP coverage are controlled-environment crops (mushroom and floriculture), specialty crops (honey and maple sap), and value-loss crops (aquaculture, Christmas trees, ginseng, ornamental nursery plants, and turf grass sod).
ELAP: The Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honeybees, and Farm Raised Fish program provides emergency relief to producers and covers losses from disasters such as adverse weather or other conditions, such as blizzards and wildfires not adequately covered by other disaster programs.
LIP: The Livestock Indemnity Program provides assistance to livestock producers for livestock deaths from disaster events, in excess of normal mortality.
According to its press release, the USDA is also working on an “administrative action” for Northeast dairy farms that had to dump milk which wasn't picked up in a timely manner due to Irene washing out roads or other infrastructure.
The action would include the dumped milk “as part of the federal milk marketing order pool for the months of August and September as needed, although it was never delivered to a plant for processing.”
This decision would allow cooperatives and handlers to pay the Federal Order Blend Price to producers “on all the volume that they produced, including any milk dumped” due to Irene, said the USDA.
The USDA suggested farmers also contact their local Rural Development office for housing, business, or community assistance information. Their local Natural Resources Conservation Service office may help with debris removal.
For more information visit:
• USDA's disaster response page: http://1.usa.gov/usda-disaster.
• Vermont Agency of Agriculture: http://www.vermontagriculture.com.
• Vermont Community Foundation's farm relief grant page: http://bit.ly/farmdisasterrelief.
• Northeast Organic Farming Association of Vermont: http://nofavt.org.