USDA pays final $306M to farmers hit by 2020-2021 disasters

Feb 07, 2024

By Farms.com

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced final Emergency Relief Program (ERP) payments totaling $306 million to eligible farmers impacted by natural disasters in 2020 and 2021. These payments are intended to help offset financial losses incurred by these producers and their operations.

Highlights:

Additional payments: This disbursement adds to the initial $7.5 billion distributed through ERP Phase One in 2022.
Eligible recipients: Farmers who received ERP Phase One payments based on crop insurance indemnities are eligible for an additional 3.5% payout, increasing their overall payment factor to 78.5%.
Non-insured crops: Producers who received payments for non-insured crops through the NAP program will not receive further assistance for 2020-2021 losses.
Separate program: A distinct ERP program (ERP 2022) is currently accepting applications for losses related to 2022 natural disasters.

Background:

The $10 billion ERP program was established by the Extending Government Funding and Delivering Emergency Assistance Act of 2021.
The Disaster Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2023 provided additional funding for ERP 2022.

USDA broader efforts:

The Biden-Harris administration is committed to supporting farmers and strengthening the food system.
Initiatives include promoting local food production, ensuring fair markets, expanding access to healthy food, and investing in rural infrastructure and clean energy.

Video: What Happens When Pigs Adapt to High Soybean Meal Diets? - Gustavo Lima

In this special rerun episode of The Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast, Gustavo Lima, PhD candidate in Animal Science at Iowa State University, discusses how grow-finish pigs respond to high soybean meal diets. He explains the initial drop in feed intake, changes in backfat, later adaptation, energy efficiency, amino acid utilization, and the rise in nitrogen excretion at higher inclusion levels. Listen now on all major platforms!

Click here to read the full research article: https://academic.oup.com/jas/article/...

“Once they got adapted to the diet, they can handle higher levels of inclusion of soybean meal.”

Meet the guest: Gustavo Lima / gustavo-lima-a9867127 is a PhD candidate in Animal Science at Iowa State University whose work focuses on swine nutrition, ingredient characterization, energy metabolism, caloric efficiency, and applied data analysis. With more than 15 years of experience in swine production across Latin America, Gustavo also brings expertise in environmental control, performance evaluation, barn ventilation, and grow-finish housing. Learn more from Gustavo Lima on The Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast, available on all major platforms.