The third and final tranche of 2019 Market Facilitation Program (MFP) payments aimed at assisting farmers suffering from damage due to unjustified trade retaliation was announced Feb. 3. U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue made the announcement at the direction of President Donald J. Trump.

Farmers were slated to start receiving the payments by Feb. 7.

 “It’s been a great start to 2020 for American agriculture with the signing of the historic Phase 1 Deal with China and the signing of USMCA,” Perdue said. “While these agreements are welcome news, we must not forget that 2019 was a tough year for farmers, as they were the tip of the spear when it came to unfair trade retaliation. President Trump is following through on his promise to help and support farmers as he continues to fight for fair market access just like he did with China.”

Payments will be made by the Farm Service Agency to producers of alfalfa hay, barley, canola, corn, extra-long staple cotton, millet, oats, peanuts, rapeseed, rye, sesame seed, sorghum, soybeans, sunflower seed, triticale, upland cotton and wheat. MFP assistance for these non-specialty crops is based on a single county payment rate multiplied by a farm’s total plantings of MFP-eligible crops in aggregate in 2019. Those per-acre payments are not dependent on which of these crops are planted in 2019. A producer’s total payment-eligible planting cannot exceed 2018 planting. County payment rates range from $15 to $150 per acre, depending on the impact of unjustified trade retaliation in that county.

 Dairy producers who were in business as of June 1 will receive a per hundredweight payment on Dairy Margin Coverage production history.

Acreage of non-specialty crops and cover crops had to be planted by Aug. 1 to be eligible for MFP payments.

 Learn more at farmers.gov.