Agricultural News
Oklahoma Wheat Farmers Hit $99 Million Dollar ACRE Payday
Sat, 06 Nov 2010 19:42:14 CDT
Francie Tolle, executive director of USDA's Farm Service Agency (FSA) in Oklahoma announced today that USDA has started issuing an estimated $420 million in 2009 crop Average Crop Revenue Election (ACRE) payments to producers enrolled in the ACRE program for wheat, corn, barley, dry peas, grain sorghum, lentils, oats, peanuts, soybeans, and upland cotton due to revenue losses. One of every five of those national dollars are headed for the bank accounts of Oklahoma wheat, oat or corn producers who chose to signup for ACRE in the summer of 2009. According to Tolle, there could be up to an estimated $99 million in ACRE payments issued to producers of the aforementioned crops in Oklahoma.
Tolle told us that while there is up to $99 million available to Oklahoma producers, probably not all of that end up coming to farmers in the program. In an email, she says "This number is assuming that all farms will trigger and meet all eligibility conditions (which will not happen for one thing just because the state triggers that does not mean the farm will trigger). This number includes only crops that the state trigger has been calculated Wheat, Corn, Oats."
"These payments are an important part of the farm safety net because they help protect the farmers who provide America and the world with a reliable stream of food and commodities by buffering them from the effects of revenue declines," Tolle said.
Click on the LISTEN BAR below to hear our conversation with Francie Tolle about the ACRE payments, the upcoming 2009 SURE signup coming before the end of the year and the CAP disaster payments that some cotton and soybean producers may qualify for.
In order for producers to receive ACRE payments, revenue triggers showing losses must be met on both a state and farm basis for the specific commodity. The Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (2008 Farm Bill) requires 2009 ACRE payments to be made as soon as practicable following the end of the marketing year, but no earlier than Oct. 1, 2010. Of the $420 million in payments, about 70 percent are expected to be issued to wheat producers and 23 percent to corn producers. About 80 percent of the payments are expected to be issued to producers in Oklahoma, Washington, Illinois, South Dakota, Idaho and North Dakota.
Congress established ACRE as part of the 2008 Farm Bill to protect producers from farm market revenue declines. A list of state payment rates for the 2009 crops of barley, corn, dry peas, lentils, oats, peanuts, grain sorghum, soybeans, upland cotton and wheat is available- click here for more information.
State payment rates for other commodities will be determined after the 2009-2010 marketing year average price is published by the National Agricultural Statistical Service. The scheduled publishing dates for the 2009-2010 marketing year average prices are as follows:
· Large chickpeas, small chickpeas, sunflower seed, canola, flaxseed, mustard seed, rapeseed, safflower, crambe and sesame seed Nov. 30, 2010.
· Long grain rice and medium and short grain rice Jan. 31, 2011.
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