May 13, 2020

USDA Webinar – Applying for Coronavirus Food Assistance Program Direct Payments

1 p.m. ET, Thursday, May 14, 2020

for farmers, ranchers and other producers interested in applying for direct payments

Register in Advance

Agricultural Marketing Service header

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) and Farm Service Agency (FSA) will host a webinar on Thursday, May 14, 2020, at 1 p.m. ET, for farmers, ranchers and other producers interested in applying for direct payments through the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP).

As part of President Trump and Secretary Perdue’s April 17 announcement of a $19 billion Coronavirus Farm Assistance Program, USDA will provide $16 billion in direct support based on losses for agricultural producers where prices and market supply chains have been impacted. Also, USDA will assist eligible producers facing additional adjustment and marketing costs resulting from lost demand and short-term oversupply for the 2020 marketing year caused by COVID-19.

USDA is hosting this webinar to share what information is needed to apply for direct payments through CFAP, once the application period begins.The webinar is an opportunity for producers to learn about the general application process and required documentation prior to the official beginning of signup. Producers who are new to participating in FSA programs are especially encouraged to join the webinar.

Producers interested in participating may register in advance.

Register in Advance

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar. Participants are encouraged to submit questions through the Q&A box or by emailing CFAP.webinars@usda.gov. While questions will not be answered live during the webinar, they will be posted at farmers.gov/CFAP along with a recording of the webinar and other CFAP information. More details about CFAP direct payments will be announced soon.

Filed Under: Commercial Ag Updates, Landscape, Nursery, & Turf Tagged With: , ,
May 5, 2020

US Small Business Admin Opens Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) Programs to Agriculture

Today the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) announced that agricultural businesses are now eligible for SBA’s Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) programs. The EIDL portal reopened today as a result of funding authorized by Congress through the Paycheck Protection Program and Healthcare Enhancement Act, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Farmers and ranchers are encouraged to apply immediately.

Only agricultural businesses are eligible to apply through the reopened EIDL portal. Agricultural businesses include those engaged in the production of food and fiber, ranching and raising of livestock, aquaculture, and all other farming and agriculture-related industries. All eligible agricultural businesses with 500 or fewer employees should begin preparing the financial information necessary for the application process.

Eligible agricultural businesses can apply for the EIDL loan here.

For agriculture producers who submitted an EIDL application prior to this change, the SBA will continue to process these applications; there is no need to apply again. All other EIDL loan applications that were submitted before the portal stopped accepting new applications on April 15 will be processed on a first-in, first-out basis. This expanded access for agriculture to the EIDL program is in addition to existing access for farmers and ranchers to the SBA’s Paycheck Protection Program, which can be applied for here.

For more information, agriculture producers may visit the SBA.gov disaster assistance page.

(Based on press release from Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.)

Filed Under: Commercial Ag Updates Tagged With: , , , , ,
April 29, 2020

USDA ‘Farmers to Families Food Box Program’ Info Webinar TODAY at 2pm for Farmers, Shippers, Suppliers

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) will host a webinar on Wednesday, April 29, 2020, at 2 p.m. ET, for farmers, shippers and other suppliers interested in learning more about the Farmers to Families Food Box Program. This webinar is an opportunity for these parties to learn how to supply produce, dairy and meat products to vendors supplying food boxes to non-profits and other entities feeding hungry Americans.

Register for the Webinar HERE.

Additionally, AMS, the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) and the Office of Partnerships and Public Engagement (OPPE), published Frequently Asked Questions for non-profit organizations seeking to receive food through the Farmers to Families Food Box Program.

Frequently Asked Questions are answered here.

More information is available on the Farmers to Families Food Box Program webpage.

Additional questions may be submitted to USDAFoodBoxDistributionProgram@usda.gov.

Filed Under: Commercial Ag Updates, Field, Forage & Livestock, Fruit, Vegetable Crops Tagged With: , , , , ,
April 24, 2020

“Buy Fresh” USDA Coronavirus Farm Assistance Program (CFAP) Announcement of Solicitation

Just in from the United Fresh Produce Association:

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) today released its solicitation for proposals for the “Buy Fresh” Coronavirus Farm Assistance Program (CFAP) to purchase and distribute $100 million a month of fresh fruit and vegetables for approximately six months. USDA will award contracts for the purchase of fresh fruits and vegetables, the assembly of commodity boxes, and delivery to identified food banks, food pantries, churches, schools, community groups, and other non-profit and governmental organizations that can receive and distribute food items.

  • The solicitation and supporting documents can be found at bottom of the page here.
  • Request for Proposals (RFP) will be due on May 1, 2020.
  • AMS will hold a conference call on Tuesday, April 28th at 12:00 pm EDT (dial-in instructions forthcoming) to field additional questions from the RFP. Any questions should be submitted in the meantime to: USDAFoodBoxDistributionProgram@usda.gov

  • A recording of a United Fresh/ARS information webinar conducted on April 23rd can be found here. Additional details and updates can be found on the AMS-CFAP landing page.
Filed Under: Commercial Ag Updates Tagged With: ,
April 23, 2020

USDA Buy-Fresh Deadlines Still Short, But Proposals Due Next Week, Not Today

Staff from the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) Commodity Procurement Division just held a webinar hosted by the United Fresh Produce Association to clarify the Buy-Fresh portion of the Coronavirus Food Assistance (CFAP) Purchase and Distribution Program. With an amazingly fast turn-around since this program was announced, they will be posting a ‘solicitation’ on Friday, April 24, announcing the purchase of up to $3 billion of fresh foods ($100 million/month each of US-grown fresh produce, fresh dairy, and fresh meats) beginning in 2 weeks. Proposals for fresh produce will be accepted from PACA-licensed growers/shippers/distributors/co-ops who submit proposals by next Friday to put together ‘consumer wholesale boxes’ for local/regional non-profits (food banks, food pantries, churches, etc.) and schools (which may or may not include universities/colleges – to be determined) to distribute to consumers. Approved proposals will be announced a week later to be implemented immediately.

Details of the program are available on the AMS website. The size of the box and contents (there are some targeted products) are to be worked out between the distributor and the non-profit, and included in the submitted proposal. ‘Fresh produce’ also includes ‘fresh-cut produce’, and anticipated changes in seasonal content should be outlined. Non-profit recipients may work with multiple distributors, especially as there may be different groups supplying produce, dairy and meat. The actual ‘solicitation‘ will be posted on Friday, April 24. You can sign up for email updates.

New Jersey is serviced by 2 major food banks that distribute food to local pantries/feeding programs throughout the state. The Food Bank of South Jersey in Pennsauken services counties along the Delaware River from Mercer to Salem, while the rest of the state is under the umbrella of the Community Food Bank of NJ, headquartered in Newark with branches in Monmouth and Atlantic Counties. You could work with either of these larger organizations or directly with smaller community programs closer to your locale. You might also propose working with PhilAbundance, the major food bank servicing Philadelphia.

 

Filed Under: Commercial Ag Updates Tagged With: , , ,