USDA says $3 billion available to offset 2022 disasters

Row crop and specialty crop growers are eligible for more than $3 billion from the Emergency Relief Program (ERP) to offset losses from natural disasters in 2022, said the USDA. Administrator Zach Ducheneaux of the Farm Services Agency said 2022 “was another year of weather-related challenges — for some, the third consecutive year or more in a row.”

Tuesday will be the first day that producers can apply for ERP benefits whether they received a pre-filled form from USDA or not. The USDA estimated that more than 210,000 producers would receive ERP benefits on the basis of indemnities paid to them through crop insurance or a related USDA crop program for which insurance coverage is not offered. Two tracks were offered for ERP applications, one based on crop insurance data and the other on revenue declines due to catastrophes in 2022.

Crop insurance indemnities totaling $19.3 billion have been paid on 2022 crops to date, the largest amount ever, according to a Risk Management Agency database.