South Georgia Black Cattlemen group hosts roundtable with USDA

ATHENS — USDA’s Farm Service Agency State Executive Director Arthur Tripp recently visited with members of the South Georgia Black Cattlemen’s Association to discuss advancing agriculture in Georgia, FSA program eligibility, and disaster recovery assistance for cattle producers, including recent increases in Livestock Indemnity Program payment rates and eligibility for the Livestock Forage Disaster Program.

“Our visit with the South Georgia Black Cattlemen’s Association was critical in our effort to inform cattle producers across Georgia of FSA’s various programs and loans available to assist them in their recovery from drought and other natural disaster events,” Tripp said. “Many people don’t realize the many ways that we can help them. It is vitally important that we have these conversations with producers so that we can work together to ensure that agriculture remains Georgia’s No. 1 industry.”

LFP is one of several disaster assistance programs available to cattle producers. LFP provides payments to eligible livestock producers and contract growers who also produce forage crops for grazing and suffered losses due to a qualifying drought during the normal grazing period for the county. To date, seven Georgia counties have met the drought severity levels that trigger LFP eligibility for the 2022 program year., including Bulloch, Bryan, Chatham, Effingham, Long, Liberty and McIntosh.

To expedite the application process, producers are encouraged to gather and submit records documenting 2022 losses. Supporting documents may include information related to grazing leases, contract grower agreements, and more. Eligible producers are encouraged to contact their local FSA office to schedule an appointment to apply for LFP drought recovery assistance. The deadline to apply for 2022 LFP assistance is Jan. 30, 2023.

An additional USDA disaster assistance program available to cattle producers is the Livestock Indemnity Program. LIP provides benefits to livestock owners and some contract growers for livestock deaths exceeding normal mortality from eligible adverse weather events, certain predation losses, and reduced sales prices due to an injury from an eligible loss. Indemnity payments are made at a rate of 75% of the market value of the livestock on the day before the date of death.

Except under certain loss conditions, drought is not an eligible adverse weather event for LIP benefits, but producers should consult with their local FSA staff for more information and to determine eligibility for LIP and other livestock disaster assistance.

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