Farm Storage Financing, Whole Farm Insurance, Food Safety Rules, and More

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USDA NEWS

New Farm Storage Financing Options for Meat, Dairy, and Eggs – For most farmers, on-farm storage is essential to keeping food fresh and safe prior to marketing. Depending on the size, on-farm storage facilities can be costly to build and install, and not always financially feasible for small and beginning farmers. The good news is that the U.S. Department of Agriculture has recently expanded eligibility for very low interest farm loans to farmers to help defray the costs of needed on-farm storage.

RMA Announces that Whole-Farm Will Be the First Universally Available Crop Insurance Policy – On August 27, USDA’s Risk Management Agency announced the expansion of the Whole-Farm Revenue Protection crop insurance policy to every state and every county; making WFRP the first crop insurance policy to be universally available nationwide. WFRP is a single crop insurance policy that insures all of a farmer’s crops and animals under one policy…

Millions Available for Production of Second-Generation Biofuels – Earlier this month, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced the availability of $7.7 million through the Biomass Crop Assistance Program for producers to grow biomass for bioenergy production within four existing BCAP “project areas.” In addition to expanding production in these four areas, USDA is also accepting proposals for new project areas…

FDA NEWS

Members of Congress Call on FDA to Begin Outreach and Education to Farmers on New Food Safety Rules – With the U.S. Food and Drug Administration poised to release new food safety rules for produce growers and food facilities this fall, Members of Congress are drawing attention to the urgent need for outreach, education, and training – particularly as faced by small-scale farms…