Loans Available to North Country Farmers Affected by Excessive Snow

Apr 14, 2025

The U.S. Department of Agriculture is offering low-interest physical loss loans for producers affected by excessive snow this winter.

Farms in certain counties, including several in the North Country, are eligible to apply if their property was damaged or destroyed by snow between Jan. 2 and March 1.

The loans, offered through the USDA's Farm Service Agency, "can help producers repair or replace damaged or destroyed physical property essential to the success of the agricultural operation, including livestock losses," a press release said. That also includes essential farm buildings, fixtures to real estate, equipment, livestock, perennial crops, fruit and nut bearing trees, and harvested or stored crops and hay.

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Video: 2026 T.K. Cheung Lecture in Animal Science - Dan Weary

T.K. Cheung Lecture in Animal Science: "Using science to assess and improve the welfare of dairy cattle"

Dan Weary is a Professor at the University of British Columbia. Dan did his BSc and MSc at McGill and Doctorate at Oxford before co-founding UBC’s Animal Welfare Program where he now co-directs this active research group. His research focuses on understanding the perspectives of animals and applying these insights to develop methods of assessing animal welfare and improving the lives of animals. His work has helped drive changes in practices (including the adoption of higher milk rations for calves and pain management for disbudding) and housing methods (including the adoption of social housing for pre-weaned calves). He also studies cow comfort and lameness, social interactions among cows, and interactions between cows, human handlers and technologies like automated millking systems that are increasingly used on farms. His presentation will outline key questions in cattle welfare, highlight recent UBC research addressing them, and showcase innovative methods for improving the lives of cattle and their caretakers.