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:

• Precision Agriculture Equipment - Eligible producers could use a Term Operating Loan to purchase equipment like GPS globes, monitors, or strip till fertilizer equipment.
• Cover Crops - Eligible producers could use an Annual Operating Loan for seed costs.
• No/Reduced Till - Eligible producers could use a Term Operating Loan to purchase equipment.
• Livestock Facility Air Scrubber or Waste Treatment - Eligible producers could use a Farm Ownership Loan for capital improvements to livestock facilities.
• 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.

Dates to Request Referendum: May 6, 2024, and ending May 31, 2024.

Summary:
The Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) announced that soybean producers may request a referendum to determine whether producers want the Secretary to  conduct a referendum on the Soybean Promotion and Research Order (Order), as authorized under the Soybean Promotion, Research, and Consumer Information Act (Act). Participation in the request for referendum is voluntary. Producers should participate only if they wish to request a referendum on the program.

If at least 10 percent, not to exceed 1/5 of producers from any one State, of the 515,008 eligible producers determined by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) participate in the request for referendum, a referendum will be held within one year from that determination. If results of the request for referendum indicate that a referendum is not supported, a referendum will not be conducted. The results of the request for referendum will be published in a notice in the Federal Register.

To Request Referendum:
Soybean producers may request a referendum during the 4-week period beginning May 6, 2024, and ending May 31, 2024.

To be eligible to participate in the request for referendum, producers must certify that they or the producer entity they are authorized to represent paid an assessment at any time between January 1, 2022, and December 31, 2023.

Form LS-51-1, Soybean Promotion and Research Order Request for Referendum, can be obtained from May 6, 2024, to May 31, 2024, by mail, FAX, or in person from Farm Service Agency (FSA) County Offices, or can be downloaded from https://www.ams.usda.gov/rules-regulations/research-promotion/soybean. Completed forms and supporting documentation must be returned to the appropriate FSA County Office:

• By FAX or in person no later than COB on May 31, 2024.
• By mail postmarked by midnight on May 31, 2024, and must be
  received in the FSA County Office by COB on June 7, 2024.

Contact:
Notice of the Request for Referendum was published in the February 2, 2024, Federal Register. For more information, contact Jeana Harbison, Research and Promotion Division; Livestock and Poultry Program, AMS, USDA; STOP 0249 - Room 2092-S; 1400 Independence Avenue, SW.; Washington, D.C. 20250-0249; tel. (202) 720-5705; or via the Internet at https://www.ams.usda.gov/rules-regulations/research-promotion/soybean .

New Deadline May 31, 2024

Last Friday, the NJDA closed the Request for Proposals (RFP) period for our Underserved, Beginning and Military Veteran Farmers Mini-Grant Program. Due to a recent increase in interest in the program, they have decided to extend a second RFP window to members of our specialty crop community who qualify. The second RFP will be open to the public starting May 10^th, with the final application deadline now May 31^st at 5PM.

Applicants from the first RFP period can expect a funding decision following the NJ Board of Agriculture meeting on May 22^nd. Applicants who apply during the second RFP period can expect a decision following the June 26^th NJ Board of Agriculture meeting.

For those interested in learning more about this program, the NJDA will be hosting a webinar (Webinar link: Program Webinar) to promote the Underserved, Beginning and Military Veteran Farmers Mini-Grant Program on Friday, May 10^th at 11 am EDT. Please join us to learn more about the program guidelines, eligibility, and application process. Q&A will follow the presentation.

Registration is not required. A recording of the webinar will be available for those who are unable to attend. 

More program information can be found on the program website at https://www.nj.gov/agriculture/grants/ufngrants.html

You must file with your county office within 90 days of land transactions

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.

Penalties:

Any foreign person who violates the reporting obligation as described in paragraph (a) of this section shall be subject to the following penalties:

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 your local FSA office. 

Agricultural producers in New Jersey should complete their crop acreage reports after planting and should make appointments with their Farm Service Agency (FSA) office before the applicable deadline.

We encourage producers to report farms as they are planted and avoid waiting until the 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.

Deadlines - The following acreage reporting dates remain in New Jersey for 2024:

• May 31 - 2025 nursey crops
• July 15 - corn, soybeans, spring feed grains, forage, CRP, hemp & most other crops                   
• August 15 - processing beans

Exceptions - 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.
• Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP) policy holders should note that the acreage reporting date for NAP-covered crops is the earlier of the dates listed above or 15 calendar days before grazing or harvesting of the crop begins

Information you'll need - To file a crop acreage report, you will 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

Producers should also report crop acreage they intended to plant, but due to natural disaster, were unable to plant. 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.

Over the next several weeks, USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) will conduct two major mid-year surveys, the June Agricultural Survey and the June Area Survey. The agency will contact more than 5,000 producers across the northeast to determine crop acreage and stock levels as of June 1, 2024.

“The June Agricultural Survey and the June Area Survey are two of the most important and well-known surveys NASS conducts,” said Charles Butler, Acting Director of the NASS Northeastern Regional Office. “When producers respond to these surveys, they provide essential information that helps determine the expected acreage and supply of major commodities in the United States for the 2024 crop year. The results are used by farmers and ranchers, USDA, exporters, researchers, economists, policymakers, and others to inform a wide range of decisions.”

Producers can respond to the June Agricultural Survey online at agcounts.usda.gov, by phone, or mail. They will be asked to provide information on planted and harvested acreage, including acreage for biotech crops and grain stocks. For the June Area Survey, agency representatives will interview farm and ranch operators in randomly selected segments over the phone and in person. Producers will be asked to provide information on crop acreage, grain stocks, livestock inventory, land values, and value of sales.

“NASS safeguards the privacy of respondents by keeping all individual information confidential and publishing the data in aggregate form only to ensure that no operation or producer can be identified,” said Butler. “We recognize that this is a hectic time for farmers, but the information they provide helps U.S. agriculture remain viable and capable. I urge them to respond to these surveys and thank them for their participation.”

NASS will publish the data in a series of USDA reports, including the annual Acreage and quarterly Grain Stocks reports on June 28, 2024. These data also contribute to NASS’s monthly and annual Crop Production reports, the annual Small Grains Summary, annual Farms and Land in Farms and Land Values reports, various livestock reports, including Cattle, Sheep and Goats, and Hogs and Pigs, and USDA’s monthly World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates.

These and all NASS reports are available at nass.usda.gov/Publications/. For more information, call the NASS Northeastern Regional Field Office at (800) 498-1518.