USDA Reports Record Enrollment in Key Farm Safety-Net Programs

ARC-and-PLC-2Producers signed a record 1.77 million contracts for the USDA’s Agriculture Risk Coverage (ARC) and Price Loss Coverage (PLC) programs for the 2019 crop year.

The signup total represents more than 107 percent of the total contracts signed compared with a five-year average. Farm Service Agency (FSA) Administrator Richard Fordyce says farmers are using the programs to mitigate risks.

“[Farmers] recognize that ARC and PLC provide the financial protections they need to weather substantial drops in crop prices or revenues,” said Fordyce.

FSA attributes the significant participation in the 2019 crop year ARC and PLC programs to increased producer interest in the programs under the 2018 Farm Bill.

FSA says the growth also comes from an increase in eligible farms because of the selling and buying of farms and new opportunities for beginning farmers and military veterans with farms having ten or fewer base acres.

Producers interested in enrolling for 2020 should contact their FSA county office. They must enroll by June 30 and make their one-time update to PLC payment yields by September 30.

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