Pandemic-aid program adds to list of eligible crops ByDaveKranz
ensof additional productseligible for relief under the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program, or CFAP. It also extended the deadline to apply for the programby two weeks, to Sept. 11. The program provides direct financial assistance to farmers and ranchers who have suffered price declines of 5% or greater for their crops or commodities in the first quarter of the fiscal year, or who absorbed losses due to pandemic-related
supplychaindisruptionsand facedsignifi- cant newmarketing costs as a result. ThenewUSDA list of eligiblecrops adds nursery crops and cut flowers, all sheep andavarietyof aquacultureproducts, plus more than 40 specialty crops, including bok choy, dates, endive, horseradish, mi- crogreens, nectarines, parsley, persim- mons, pomegranates, pummelos, pump- kins, tangelos and others. Six crops became newly eligible for
funding for sales losses: greenonions, pis- tachios, peppermint, spearmint, walnuts and watermelons; originally, they had been eligible only for payments on mar- keting adjustments. A full list of the commodities coveredby the program, and information about how toapply,maybefoundat farmers.gov/cfap. Sara Neagu-Reed, associate director of federal policy for the California Farm BureauFederation, saidFarmBureauwas pleasedby the secondroundof changes to CFAP, noting they will provide more spe- cialty-crop growers with an opportunity to apply for aid. But, she added, “The additional com- modities, such as nursery crops and fresh cut flowers, should have beenmade eligi- ble from the start. It shouldn’t have taken this long.” Neagu-Reed said Farm Bureau will continue advocating for additional com- modities, such as winegrapes and pima cotton, that have not yet been included in the aid program. The two-week extensionof the applica- tiondeadline, shesaid,will beof particular benefit for those farmers whose crops just became eligible. John Newton, American Farm Bureau Federationchiefeconomist, saidonlyabout $7 billion of the estimated $15.4 billion in CFAPaidhadbeendistributedthroughthe first eight or nineweeks of theprogram. “Inthecaseof specialty-cropproducers, at this point only about $300 million has been paid to those growers. I think they needmore time to engage with (USDA),” Newton said, adding that the agency should “do a little bit more outreach, so that farmers across the country know that this critical support is available.” AFBFPresident ZippyDuvall saidmany farmfamilies havenot participated in fed- eral programsbefore “andneedhelpnavi- gating their way through the process.” Statistics fromtheUSDA indicate about 25% of the nation’s farmers have partici- pated inCFAP, according toAFBF. (DaveKranz is editor of AgAlert.Hemay be contacted at dkranz@cfbf.com.) UC creates model of HLB bacterium University of California scientists have reportedmore progress in possibly coun- teracting the fatal citrus diseaseHLB. UCRiverside researchers said last week they have created models of the bacteri- um that causes HLB. James Borneman, a microbiology professor at UC Riverside, said the models could help in managing the disease. Last month, other UC Riverside sci- entists said they had identified a new treatment that shows promise for con- trolling HLB. Borneman said microbes “almost al- ways adapt” to control measures, add- ing, “There won’t be one thing that will fix this disease.”
Whileexpressingsatisfactionwithchang- es to a key federal pandemic-aid program for farmersandranchers, agriculturalorga- nizations said theywould continue to seek inclusion of more crops and commodities in the program through the next round of stimulus legislationanda“CFAP2.0”pack- age the U.S. Department of Agriculture is expected tounveil incomingweeks. USDA said last week it had made doz-
Every dog has its day
Participate in our 2020 California Farm Bureau Farm Dog contest. With support from Nationwide, the winner will earn $1,000 in cash . Runners-up receive cash prizes, too.
Submit up to four photos and a brief essay about why your dog is an integral part of your farm or ranch operation.
Enter online at cfbf.com/farmdogcontest by Oct. 16th.
The contest is open only to Farm Bureau members. Applicants who are not Farm Bureau members can go to cfbf.com/join to learn about becoming a member.
6 Ag Alert August 19, 2020
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