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The USDA New York Farm Service Agency (FSA) is seeking qualified individuals with knowledge of field crops and specialty crops who are interested in becoming independent crop loss adjustment contractors for FSA in the Eastern half of the state, as well as NYC and Long Island.
FSA administers the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP) and Tree Assistance Program (TAP), both provide financial assistance to eligible producers affected by drought, flood, hurricane, or other natural disasters.
FSA utilizes contracted crop loss adjusters when eligible producers experience crop losses and prevented planting due eligible weather related and natural disaster events. Contracted crop loss adjusters will be responsible for completing field inspections, reading maps and aerial photos, measuring fields and assessing damage or loss. The crop loss adjuster will perform fact-finding duties (regarding crop damage), record information and transmit loss information to accurately assess indemnity.
Pay starts at $17/hr, rises to $22.50/hr once trained, and $25/hr in year two.
Interested individuals should contact Dan Mapley by email at daniel.mapley@usda.gov, or phone at 315-477-6331 by July 1.
NOTE: Selected individuals must have their own transportation and be willing to travel to multiple counties, to work crop loss claims. Travel expenses are reimbursable. Further training will be provided to crop loss adjusters once contractor selections are made. This position does not offer medical or retirement benefits or overtime.
USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer and lender.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) reminds agricultural producers that Farm Loan Programs can be used to support a variety of climate-smart agriculture practices, which build on many practices that farmers and ranchers already use, like cover cropping, nutrient management and conservation tillage.
Climate-smart agricultural practices generate significant environmental benefits by capturing and sequestering carbon, improving water management, restoring soil health and more. Farm loan funding complements other tools to help producers adopt climate-smart practices, such as FSA’s Conservation Reserve Program, crop insurance options that support conservation, and conservation programs offered by USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS).
FSA offers multiple types of loans to help farmers and ranchers start, expand or maintain a family agricultural operation. These loans can provide the capital needed to invest in climate-smart practices and equipment including the establishment of rotational grazing systems, precision agriculture equipment or machinery for conversion to no-till residue management. Additionally, for programs like Conservation Reserve Program and NRCS conservation programs where USDA and the producer share the implementation cost, a farm loan could be used for the producer’s share, if consistent with the authorized loan purpose.
Some additional ways farm loans can be leveraged to invest in climate-smart agriculture practices or equipment include:
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Precision Agriculture Equipment - Eligible producers could use a Term Operating Loan to purchase equipment like GPS globes, monitors, or strip till fertilizer equipment.
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Cover Crops - Eligible producers could use an Annual Operating Loan for seed costs.
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No/Reduced Till - Eligible producers could use a Term Operating Loan to purchase equipment.
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Livestock Facility Air Scrubber or Waste Treatment - Eligible producers could use a Farm Ownership Loan for capital improvements to livestock facilities.
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Cross Fencing - Eligible producers could use an Annual or Term Operating Loan to purchase fencing and installation equipment.
Visit the Climate-Smart Agriculture and Forestry webpage on farmers.gov to learn more and see detailed examples of how an FSA farm loan can support climate-smart agriculture practices.
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Agricultural producers in New York who have not yet completed their crop acreage reports after planting should make an appointment with their U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA) service center before the applicable deadline.
An acreage report documents a crop grown on a farm or ranch and its intended uses. Filing an accurate and timely acreage report for all crops and land uses, including failed acreage and prevented planted acreage, can prevent the loss of benefits.
How to File a Report
The following acreage reporting dates are applicable in New York:
May 31, 2024 - subsequent year nursery crops
June 17, 2024 - onions
July 15, 2024 - Corn, Soybeans, Spring Planted Small Grains and most other crops including CRP and cover crops.
Acreage reporting dates vary by crop and by county. Contact your local FSA office for a list of acreage reporting deadlines by crop.
To file a crop acreage report, producers need to provide:
- Crop and crop type or variety.
- Intended use of the crop.
- Number of acres of the crop.
- Map with approximate boundaries for the crop.
- Planting date(s).
- Planting pattern, when applicable.
- Producer shares.
- Irrigation practice(s).
- Acreage prevented from planting, when applicable.
- Other information as required.
Acreage Reporting Details
The following exceptions apply to acreage reporting dates:
- If the crop has not been planted by the acreage reporting date, then the acreage must be reported no later than 15 calendar days after planting is completed.
- If a producer acquires additional acreage after the acreage reporting date, then the acreage must be reported no later than 30 calendar days after purchase or acquiring the lease. Appropriate documentation must be provided to the county office.
- If crops are covered by the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program, acreage reports should be submitted by the applicable state, county, or crop-specific reporting deadline or 15 calendar days before grazing or harvesting of the crop begins.
Producers should also report crop acreage they intended to plant, but due to natural disaster, were unable to because of a natural disaster.
Prevented planting acreage must be reported on form CCC-576, Notice of Loss, no later than 15 calendar days after the final planting date as established by FSA and USDA’s Risk Management Agency.
FSA offers continuous certification for perennial forage. This means after perennial forage is reported once and the producer elects continuous certification, the certification remains in effect until a change is made. Check with FSA at the local USDA Service Center for more information on continuous certification.
New Option to View, Print and Label Maps on Farmers.gov
Producers with an eAuth account linked to their USDA customer record can now access their FSA farm records, maps and common land units by logging into farmers.gov. A new feature will allow producers to export field boundaries as shapefiles and import and view other shapefiles, such as precision agriculture boundaries. This will allow producers to view, print and label their own maps for acreage reporting purposes.
Producers who have authority to act on behalf of another customer as a grantee via form FSA-211 Power of Attorney, Business Partner Signature Authority, along with other signature types, or as a member of a business can now access information in the farmers.gov portal.
Producers can learn how to use the farmers.gov Farm Records Mapping functionality with this fact sheet and these video tutorials.
More Information
Producers can make an appointment to report acres by contacting their local USDA Service Center.
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New York farms can grow their operations and reap savings with investments in clean energy and energy efficiency. Reducing equipment and facility energy consumption also affords greater comfort and safety for employees and assets – all while improving a farm’s bottom line.
The New York State Energy Research & Development Authority (NYSERDA) has three agriculture program opportunities:
Agriculture Energy Audit Program (AEAP): This program offers NY state farmers no-cost energy audits to help identify energy efficiency opportunities on their farm.
Energy Best Practices for Agriculture: The best practices have been developed to help educate producers about energy efficient technologies, how they function, the average cost, as well as an average payback in years.
REAP Technical Assistance Program (RTAP) - This program has been designed to assist farmers at no-cost to make applications to the Rural Energy for America Program (REAP). If awarded, farmers can receive up to 50% of the total project cost. Priority will be given to farms requesting $20,000 or less in REAP grant funds or for those located in disadvantaged or distressed communities. The eligibility requirements can be found on the website. This is a first come, first served Statewide program. Assistance is available through September 30, 2026, while funds last.
For more information, head to the NYSERDA website at: https://www.nyserda.ny.gov/All-Programs/Agriculture-Energy-Assistance
The Farm Service Agency’s (FSA) Farm Storage Facility Loan (FSFL) program provides low-interest financing to help you build or upgrade storage facilities and to purchase portable (new or used) structures, equipment and storage and handling trucks.
Eligible commodities include corn, grain sorghum, rice, soybeans, oats, peanuts, wheat, barley, minor oilseeds harvested as whole grain, pulse crops (lentils, chickpeas and dry peas), hay, honey, renewable biomass, fruits, nuts and vegetables for cold storage facilities, floriculture, hops, maple sap, rye, milk, cheese, butter, yogurt, meat and poultry (unprocessed), eggs, and aquaculture (excluding systems that maintain live animals through uptake and discharge of water). Qualified facilities include grain bins, hay barns and cold storage facilities for eligible commodities.
Loans up to $50,000 can be secured by a promissory note/security agreement, loans between $50,000 and $100,000 may require additional security, and loans exceeding $100,000 require additional security.
You do not need to demonstrate the lack of commercial credit availability to apply. The loans are designed to assist a diverse range of farming operations, including small and mid-sized businesses, new farmers, operations supplying local food and farmers markets, non-traditional farm products, and underserved producers.
For more information, contact your local USDA Service Center or visit fsa.usda.gov/pricesupport.
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May is Mental Health Awareness Month and NY FarmNet is busy promoting the importance of mental health for farmers and rural communities throughout New York State. A recent CDC study of occupational suicide risk found that farmers, ranchers, and other agricultural managers had a suicide rate more than 50 percent higher than the overall suicide rate in all surveyed occupations. Similar studies all show that farmers have higher rates of depression, anxiety, substance abuse, and other negative mental health outcomes.
Mental health support is at the core of what NY FarmNet does day in and day out to help farmers across NY. Our consultant teams include licensed social workers to support farmers with issues like stress, anxiety, depression, family conflict, communication, and much more.
This year, NY FarmNet is providing additional educational outreach to help build resilient agricultural communities across the state with these three events:
May 20, 6:30 PM - 8:00 PM - Rural Mental Health Resiliency Talk
Church on Green, 5 North Academy Street, Wyoming, NY
May 23, 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM - Talk Saves Lives
CCE of Suffolk County, Riverhead, NY
May 29, 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM - Free Webinar: Farmer Mental Health in New York State: A Story of Crisis and Advocacy from the Makers of the Documentary “Muckville”
Register for free at: https://cornell.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_qyNb7EbhT5OoB-c0FpuTYg
For more information on these events and more, click here.
For free support 24/7, NY FarmNet can be contacted at 1-800-547-3276 or by email at nyfarmnet@cornell.edu.
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The USDA Farm Service Agency’s (FSA) Direct Farm Ownership loans can help farmers and ranchers become owner-operators of family farms, improve and expand current operations, increase agricultural productivity, and assist with land tenure to save farmland for future generations.
There are three types of Direct Farm Ownership Loans: regular, down payment and joint financing. FSA also offers a Direct Farm Ownership Microloan option for smaller financial needs up to $50,000.
Joint financing allows FSA to provide more farmers and ranchers with access to capital. FSA lends up to 50 percent of the total amount financed. A commercial lender, a State program or the seller of the property being purchased, provides the balance of loan funds, with or without an FSA guarantee. The maximum loan amount for a joint financing loan is $600,000, and the repayment period for the loan is up to 40 years.
The operation must be an eligible farm enterprise. Farm Ownership loan funds cannot be used to finance nonfarm enterprises and all applicants must be able to meet general eligibility requirements. Loan applicants are also required to have participated in the business operations of a farm or ranch for at least three years out of the 10 years prior to the date the application is submitted. The applicant must show documentation that their participation in the business operation of the farm or ranch was not solely as a laborer.
For more information about farm loans, contact your local USDA Service Center or visit fsa.usda.gov.
The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) requires Federal agencies to consider all potential environmental impacts for federally funded projects before the project is approved.
For all Farm Service Agency (FSA) programs, an environmental review must be completed before actions are approved, such as site preparation or ground disturbance. These programs include, but are not limited to, the Emergency Conservation Program (ECP), Farm Storage Facility Loan (FSFL) program and farm loans. If project implementation begins before FSA has completed an environmental review, the request will be denied. Although there are exceptions regarding the Stafford Act and emergencies, it’s important to wait until you receive written approval of your project proposal before starting any actions.
Applications cannot be approved until FSA has copies of all permits and plans. Contact your local FSA office early in your planning process to determine what level of environmental review is required for your program application so that it can be completed timely.
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The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA) reminds foreign investors with an interest in agricultural land in the United States that they are required to report their land holdings and transactions to USDA.
The Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act (AFIDA) requires foreign investors who buy, sell or hold an interest in U.S. agricultural land to report their holdings and transactions to the USDA. Foreign investors must file AFIDA Report Form FSA-153 with the FSA county office in the county where the land is located. Large or complex filings may be handled by AFIDA headquarters staff in Washington, D.C.
According to CFR Title 7 Part 781, any foreign person who holds an interest in U.S. agricultural land is required to report their holdings no later than 90 days after the date of the transaction.
Foreign investors should report holdings of agricultural land totaling 10 acres or more used for farming, ranching or timber production, and leaseholds on agricultural land of 10 or more years. Tracts totaling 10 acres or less in the aggregate, and which produce annual gross receipts in excess of $1,000 from the sale of farm, ranch, forestry or timber products, must also be reported. AFIDA reports are also required when there are changes in land use, such as from agricultural to nonagricultural use. Foreign investors must also file a report when there is a change in the status of ownership.
The information from AFIDA reports is used to prepare an annual report to Congress. These annual reports to Congress, as well as more information, are available on the FSA AFIDA webpage. .
Assistance in completing the FSA-153 report may be obtained from the local FSA office. For more information regarding AFIDA or FSA programs, contact the Name County FSA office at phone or visit farmers.gov.
Producers are encouraged to call their local FSA office to schedule an appointment to ensure maximum use of their time and to make sure FSA staff is available to tend to their important business needs. Please call your local FSA office ahead to set an appointment and to discuss any records or documentation that might be needed during your appointment. To find your local FSA office, visit farmers.gov/working-with-us/service-center-locator.
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