Recover with Help From the USDA

Due to recent events, you may be looking for resources available to help you and your farm recover from a natural disaster. Did you know that the USDA offers many programs designed to assist farmers, ranchers, communities, and other businesses that have been affected by events such as wildfires? Below is a list of Farm Service Agency (FSA) programs that are available. To find more information on this assistance, visit the FSA website today or contact your Adams Brown advisor.

Livestock Assistance

There are several programs available to help your business cope with the loss of livestock, including the Livestock Indemnity Program (LIP). If you have suffered excessive livestock death losses and grazing or feed losses due to the recent wildfires or other natural disasters, you may be eligible for this program. LIP offers payments for your livestock death losses that exceed normal mortality due to adverse weather. To participate in this program, you must provide documentation of death losses resulting from an adverse weather event or other natural disaster. Your claim must be submitted within thirty calendar days of the loss. days of when the loss is apparent.

Another program available is the Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honeybees, and Farm-Raised-Fish Program (ELAP), which provides emergency relief for losses due to feed or water shortages, disease, adverse weather, or other conditions, which are not adequately addressed by other disaster programs. To participate in this program, you must submit a notice of loss to your local FSA office within 30 calendar days of when the loss is apparent and maintain documentation and receipts.

For these programs, you should record all pertinent information regarding livestock losses due to the eligible adverse weather or loss condition, including:

  • Documentation of the number, kind, type, and weight range of livestock that have died, supplemented by photographs or video records of ownership and losses, if possible;
  • Rendering truck receipts by kind, type and weight;
  • Beginning inventory supported by birth recordings or purchase receipts;
  • Documentation from Animal Plant Health Inspection Service, Department of Natural Resources, or other sources to substantiate eligible death losses due to an eligible loss condition;
  • Documentation that livestock were removed from grazing pastures due to an eligible adverse weather or loss condition;
  • Documentation of livestock feed that was purchased, self-produced (mechanically harvested forage), or feedstuffs intended for use as feed for the producer’s eligible livestock that was physically damaged or destroyed due to an eligible adverse weather or loss condition;
  • Costs of transporting livestock feed to eligible livestock, such as receipts for equipment rental, fees for hay lifts and snow removal;
  • Feed purchase receipts if feed supplies or grazing pastures are destroyed;
  • Number of gallons of water transported to livestock due to water shortages.

Other Available Programs

The USDA offers other risk management and disaster assistance options to help producers recover after disasters like tornados and wildfires. Some of the available programs include:

  • Non-Insured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP) provides financial assistance to producers of non-insurable crops when low yields, loss of inventory, or prevented planting occur due to natural disasters including excessive wind and qualifying drought (includes native grass for grazing losses occurring during the grazing season).
  • Tree Assistance Program (TAP) provides assistance to eligible orchardists and nursery tree growers for qualifying tree, shrub and vine losses due to natural disasters including excessive wind and qualifying drought.
  • Emergency Loan Program is available to producers with agriculture operations located in a county under a primary or contiguous Presidential or Secretarial disaster designation. These low interest loans help producers recover from production and physical losses.
  • Emergency Conservation Program (ECP) provides emergency funding for farmers and ranchers to rehabilitate land severely damaged by natural disasters; includes fence loss.

For more information on these programs and documentation requirements, contact your Adams Brown advisor, your local County USDA Service Center or visit the FSA website.