Farmers can expect trade aid this week and disaster aid next month. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue says the Market Facilitation Program payments will be announced yet this week and will offer producers at least $15 an acre for those who qualify. However, payments rates will vary, as USDA used county-level production data to create its formula for payment rates.
So, counties with higher production, naturally, will likely receive higher payments. The first round of three expected payments will represent roughly 50 percent of the funds available to farmers from the $16 billion Market Facilitation Program. Cover crops grown on acres prevented from planting this year will qualify for the payments. Meanwhile, $3 billion in disaster funds for agriculture should launch next month.
The disaster package includes funds for farmers impacted by hurricanes, wildfires, tornadoes and flooding since last year. Politico reports that since 2018, roughly $33 billion in disaster funding has been set aside for agriculture. The new package also includes nutrition funding for Puerto Rico.
