Hello again,
All the shopping, Christmas programs and gatherings have drawn to a close. It is the evening of Christmas Day that I love the most. The tree is shining bright, we were reminded of Jesus’ birth and have enjoyed the time with our family and friends.
As you well know, we at FSA consider our farmers to be family and friends. We are soon closing out the year 2010 and will begin another year of challenges in farming. I would remind you the 2011 DCP/ACRE program is underway and is an option to select an advance payment if you need some cash flow for 2011.
The deadline to apply for the DCP/Acre program is June 1.
Details
USDA computes DCP Program payments using base acres and payment yields established for each farm. Eligible producers receive direct payments at rates established by statute regardless of market prices. For 2011, eligible producers may request to receive advance direct payments based on 22 percent of the direct payment for each commodity associated with the farm.
USDA began issuing advance direct payments starting Dec. 1, 2010. Counter-cyclical payment rates vary depending on market prices. Counter-cyclical payments are issued only when the effective price for a commodity falls below its target price.
The effective price is the higher of the national average market price received during the 12- month marketing year for each covered commodity and the national average rate for a marketing assistance loan for the covered commodity.
The optional ACRE Program provides a safety net based on state revenue losses and acts in place of the price-based safety net of counter-cyclical payments under DCP. A farm’s payment is based on a revenue guarantee calculated using a five-year average state yield and the most recent two-year national price for each eligible commodity.
Payment
An ACRE payment is issued when both the state and the farm have incurred a revenue loss. The payment is based on 83.3 percent of the farm’s planted acres times the difference between the state ACRE guarantee and the state revenue times the ratio of the farm’s yield divided by the state expected yield.
The total number of planted acres for which a producer may receive ACRE payments may not exceed the total base on the farm. In exchange for participating in ACRE, in addition to not receiving counter-cyclical payments, a farm’s direct payment is reduced by 20 percent, and marketing assistance loan rates are reduced by 30 percent.
That’s all for now!
FSA Andy
