AREA FARMERS ELIGIBLE FOR DISASTER LOANS
Wednesday, December 21st, 2005 -- 8:09 AM
Area farmers may qualify for emergency loans after the United States Department of Agriculture declares 32 Wisconsin counties ?disaster counties?.Doug Lund, a farm loan specialist with Farm Service Agency in Madison, says winterkill in the alfalfa crop prompted the declaration. "It was extremely cold then got warm later," Lund explains. "It causes the alfalfa to get stripped from the roots. As a result of that, the alfalfa doesn't come back up in the spring."
The declaration will allow farmers in disaster counties to apply for low-interest emergency loans of up to $500,000 that will cover production and physical losses. The producers must meet a ?test for credit?. Clark County is considered one of seven ?primary disaster? counties, but Lund says that doesn?t mean much.
"Any county that adjoins to those (primary) counties also become eligible so producers around the edges of those counties are also covered," Lund says.
The declaration also activates a program called ?1951-P? that allows FSA to set aside installments.
Farmers in designated counties who feel they have sustained qualifying damages have until July 3 to contact their local FSA to complete the application process.
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