USDA declares entire state as agricultural disaster area

INDIANAPOLIS (Inside INdiana Business) — Hoosier farmers in all 92 counties who sustained weather-related damage this year due to excessive rain and flooding are eligible to apply for federal disaster assistance, according to Gov. Eric Holcomb.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has declared 74 counties
as primary natural disaster areas. The other 18 Indiana counties are considered
contiguous disaster counties, which allows farmers in those areas to be
eligible for the same government assistance.

“I am grateful that Secretary Perdue and his team recognized the hardships Hoosier farmers experienced this planting season,” Holcomb said.

This disaster declaration was in response to a letter the
governor sent to U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue in July requesting
assistance.

Under a secretarial natural disaster designation, farmers in
those counties can get assistance, like low interest loans, from the Farm
Service Agency provided they meet certain requirements.

The money can be used to replace essential property, pay for
production costs associated with the disaster and refinance certain debt.

“Farmers, who have been doing this their entire lives, acknowledge this has been one of the toughest seasons on record, and we’re not in the clear yet,” said Bruce Kettler, director of the Indiana State Department of Agriculture. “While we know this isn’t a cure-all solution, this assistance is welcome news and will help those severely impacted.”

Last week, a crew of 60 field scouts crisscrossed Indiana to gauge how the corn and soybean crops will look when farmers hit the fields with their combines this fall. One described it as “the bottom of the worst ever.” You can read that story from Inside INdiana Business by clicking here.