New Jersey State FSA Newsletter - December 2024
 Agricultural producers of perishable commodities including fruits, vegetables and floriculture can now get funding for controlled atmosphere storage through Farm Storage Facility Loans (FSFL) offered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA). Controlled atmosphere storage regulates the concentrations of oxygen, carbon dioxide and nitrogen in a storage room to increase the shelf life of crops.
In addition to now supporting controlled atmosphere storage, FSFLs also provide low-interest financing to help producers build or upgrade storage facilities and to purchase portable (new or used) structures, equipment and storage and handling trucks.
The low-interest funds can also be used for controlled atmosphere storage monitoring equipment, designed to notify facility owners immediately if potential atmospheric concerns are detected. Producers may renovate existing storage facilities to include controlled atmosphere storage monitoring equipment. Authorized loan terms for FSFL renovations are three and five years only.
To assist with monitoring gases and particle concentrations for controlled atmosphere storage, the following equipment, but not limited to, is eligible for an FSFL:
- Optical oxygen sensor.
- Low power CO2 sensor.
- Air quality sensor.
- Gas detection devices.
- Air temperature and relative humidity sensor.
- Water activity meter.
- Temperature stabilized water activity analyzer.
- Precision and performance humidity and temperature transmitter.
Loans of 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.
FSFL borrowers do not need to demonstrate lack of commercial credit availability to apply. The loans are designed to assist a diverse range of agricultural operations, including small and mid-sized businesses, new farmers and ranchers, operations supplying local food and farmers markets, non-traditional farm products and underserved producers.
December Rates for FSFLs are as follows:
- Three-year loan terms: 4.125%
- Five-year loan terms: 4.125%
- Seven-year loan terms: 4.250%
- Ten-year loan terms: 4.375%
- Twelve-year loan terms: 4.375%
For more information, see the FSFL fact sheet and contact FSA at your local USDA Service Center.
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Several New Jersey Counties have been declared as either primary or contiguous disaster areas using the Secretarial Disaster Designation process. Under this designation, if you have operations in any primary or contiguous county, you are eligible to apply for low interest Emergency Loans.
Farmers in the following counties are eligible for Emergency Loans:
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Secretarial Designation S5875 - New York
- For Hurricane Debby from 08/05/2024 - 08/10/2024
- New Jersey contiguous counties: Sussex, Passaic
- Loan application deadline: 07/28/2025
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Secretarial Designation S5889 - Pennsylvania
- For Drought beginning on 11/19/2024
- New Jersey contiguous counties: Gloucester
- Loan application deadline: 07/25/2025
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Secretarial Designation S5872 - New Jersey
- For Excessive Rain and High Winds beginning on 07/16/2024
- New Jersey Primary Counties: Sussex
- New Jersey contiguous counties: Morris, Passaic, Warren
- Loan application deadline: 07/15/2025
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Secretarial Designation S5871 - New Jersey
- For Excessive Heat beginning on 06/01/2024
- New Jersey Primary Counties: Morris, Sussex, Warren
- New Jersey contiguous counties: Essex, Hunterdon, Passaic, Somerset, Union
- Loan application deadline: 07/15/2025
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Administrator's Designation N1779 - New Jersey
- For Excessive Rain and High Winds beginning on 07/16/2024
- New Jersey Primary Counties: Hunterdon, Somerset
- New Jersey contiguous counties: Mercer, Middlesex, Morris, Union, Warren
- Loan application deadline: 05/27/2025
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Secretarial Designation S5785 - Delaware
- For Drought and Excessive Heat beginning on 06/01/2024
- New Jersey contiguous counties: Cumberland, Gloucester, Salem
- Loan application deadline: 05/27/2025
Emergency loans help you recover from production and physical losses due to drought, flooding and other natural disasters or quarantine.
You have eight months from the date of the declaration to apply for emergency loan assistance. FSA will consider each loan application on its own merits, taking into account the extent of losses, security available and repayment ability. You can borrow up to 100 percent of actual production or physical losses, to a maximum amount of $500,000.
For more information about emergency loans, contact your local USDA Service Center or visit fsa.usda.gov.
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The Farm Service Agency’s (FSA) Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP) helps you manage risk through coverage for both crop losses and crop planting that was prevented due to natural disasters. The eligible or “noninsured” crops include agricultural commodities not covered by federal crop insurance.
You must be enrolled in the program and have purchased coverage for the eligible crop in the crop year and county in which the loss incurred to receive program benefits following a qualifying natural disaster.
The next closing deadline for New Jersey is December 31st for:
Honey, Asparagus, Beets, Broccoli, Cabbage, Carrots, Cauliflower, Greens, Herbs, Horseradish, Kohlrabi, Leeks, Lettuce, Parsnip, Peas, Radishes, Rhubarb, Turnips, Water Cress
New Jersey coverage deadlines
NAP Buy-Up Coverage Option
NAP offers higher levels of coverage, from 50 to 65 percent of expected production in 5 percent increments, at 100 percent of the average market price. Buy-up levels of NAP coverage are available if the producer can show at least one year of previously successfully growing the crop for which coverage is being requested.
Producers of organics and crops marketed directly to consumers also may exercise the “buy-up” option to obtain NAP coverage of 100 percent of the average market price at the coverage levels of between 50 and 65 percent of expected production.
NAP basic coverage is available at 55 percent of the average market price for crop losses that exceed 50 percent of expected production.
Buy-up coverage is not available for crops intended for grazing.
NAP Service Fees
For all coverage levels, the NAP service fee is the lesser of $325 per crop or $825 per producer per county, not to exceed a total of $1,950 for a producer with farming interests in multiple counties.
NAP Fee Waivers and Premium Reductions
Qualified veteran farmers or ranchers are eligible for a service fee waiver and premium reduction, if the NAP applicant meets certain eligibility criteria.
Beginning, limited resource and targeted underserved farmers are eligible for a waiver of NAP service fees and premium reductions when they file form CCC-860, “Socially Disadvantaged, Limited Resource and Beginning Farmer or Rancher Certification.”
Related Losses
NAP covers losses for the crop(s) you lose; losses to your trees, vines a bushes may be eligible for financial assistance through the Tree Assistance Program (TAP) which assists orchardists and nursery tree growers with the replanting or rehabilitating eligible trees, bushes, and vines lost by natural disasters.
For NAP application, eligibility and related program information, contact your USDA Service Center or visit fsa.usda.gov/nap
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Join the New Jersey Farm Service Agency for a listening session on Tuesday February 4, 2025 at the New Jersey Agriculture Convention, hosted by the New Jersey Vegetable Growers Association.
Note: We are currently working to identify if pesticide credits may be awarded to attendees.
Session Agenda
- 2:00 P.M. - How Can USDA FSA Help You? All Things NAP If pesticide credits are awarded, the session will be renamed to: All Things NAP & How Following BMPs and Failure to Maintain Spray Records Effects Your Loss Claim - Aly Dyson, Program Specialist, USDA, FSA
- 2:30 P.M. - FSA Farm Loan Programs (FLP) & the New Enhancing FLP Rule - Shannon Barton, Farm Loan Chief, USDA/FSA
- 3:00 P.M. - Why COC Elections & Acreage Reporting are Important - Lindsay Caragher, Deputy State Executive, Director, USDA/FSA
- 3:30 P.M - How Can USDA FSA Help You? Marketing Assistance Loans & Farm Storage Facility Loans Overview - Sarah Lally, Program Specialist, USDA/FSA
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Despite some recent precipitation, drought continues to persists across New Jersey, with a significant increase in a intensity since our November Newsletter. No geographic area is immune to the potential of drought at any given time.
The U.S. Drought Monitor provides a weekly drought assessment, and it plays an important role in USDA programs that help farmers and ranchers recover from drought.
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Your input can be part of the drought-monitoring process.
State climatologists and other trained observers in the drought monitoring network relay on-the-ground information from numerous sources to the US Drought monitor author each week. That can include information that you contribute.
The Drought Monitor serves as a trigger for multiple forms of federal disaster relief for agricultural producers, and sometimes producers contact the author to suggest that drought conditions in their area are worse than what the latest drought monitor shows. When the author gets a call like that, it prompts them to look closely at all available data for that area, to see whether measurements of precipitation, temperature, soil moisture and other indicators corroborate producer-submitted reports. This is the process that authors follow whether they receive one report or one hundred reports, although reports from more points may help state officials and others know where to look for impacts.
There are multiple ways to contribute your observations:
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Talk to your state climatologist - Find the current list at the American Association of State Climatologists website.
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Email - Emails sent to droughtmonitor@unl.edu inform the USDM authors.
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Become a CoCoRaHS observer - Submit drought reports along with daily precipitation observations to the Community Collaborative Rain, Hail & Snow Network.
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Submit Condition Monitoring Observer Reports (CMOR) - go.unl.edu/CMOR.
For more information, read our Ask the Expert blog with a NDMC climatologist or visit farmers.gov/protection-recovery.
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 Please join us for a virtual session of the State Technical Committee
December 11, 2024
9 a.m. - 1 p.m.
The State Technical Committee will be hosted via MS Teams
Join Online
We look forward to seeing you!
Previous Meeting Minutes from June 2024 session
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 In April 2024, the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) announced the final rule that amends and strengthens our animal disease traceability regulations for certain cattle and bison. This rule went into effect on Nov. 5, 2024.
Learn more about seven common myths and misunderstandings about the new regulations.
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 Apply by Dec. 20 for second round application batching
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Natural Resources Conservation Service in New Jersey (NRCS-NJ) is currently accepting applications for the Fiscal Year 2025 Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and 2018 Farm Bill funding through the Agricultural Conservation Easements Program (ACEP). This includes eligible parcels for both Agricultural Land Easements (ALE) and Wetland Reserve Easements (WRE) for this sign-up period.
While applications for ACEP-ALE and ACEP-WRE are taken on a continuous basis, the batching dates for the second round of applications batching is Dec. 20, 2024,. NRCS-NJ may be offering additional signup dates for ALE.
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 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.
Deadlines - The following acreage reporting dates remain in New Jersey for 2025:
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January 2 - honey
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January 15 - apples, blueberries, cranberries, peaches, grapes & strawberries
- June 2 - 2026 nursery
- July 15 - corn, soybeans, spring feed grains, forage, CRP, hemp & most other crops
- August 15 - processing beans
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.
Prevented planting is the inability to plant the intended crop acreage with proper equipment by the final planting date for the crop type because of a natural disaster.
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.
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.
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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.
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Prevented Plantings must be reported with in 15 days after the final plant date.
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 USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) offers disaster assistance and low-interest loan programs to assist you in your recovery efforts following drought. Available programs and loans include:
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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 qualifying drought (includes native grass for grazing).
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Livestock Forage Disaster Program (LFP) – provides compensation to eligible livestock producers who suffered grazing losses for covered livestock due to drought on privately owned or cash leased land
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Livestock Indemnity Program (LIP) - offers payments to eligible producers for livestock death losses in excess of normal mortality due to adverse weather. Drought is not an eligible adverse weather event, except when associated with anthrax, a condition that occurs because of drought and directly results in the death of eligible livestock.
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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.
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Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honeybees, and Farm-Raised Fish Program (ELAP) - 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.
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Emergency Loan Program – available to producers with agriculture operations located in a county under a primary or contiguous Secretarial Disaster designation. These low interest loans help producers recover from production and physical losses.
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Emergency Conservation Program (ECP) - provides emergency funding for farmers and ranchers to rehabilitate land severely damaged by natural disasters and to implement emergency water conservation measures in periods of severe drought.
To establish or retain FSA program eligibility, you must report prevented planting and failed acres (crops and grasses). Prevented planting acreage must be reported on form FSA-576, Notice of Loss, no later than 15 calendar days after the final planting date as established by FSA and Risk Management Agency (RMA).
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USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer and lender. To file a complaint of discrimination, write: USDA, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, Office of Adjudication, 1400 Independence Ave., SW, Washington, DC 20250-9410 or call (866) 632-9992 (Toll-free Customer Service), (800) 877-8339 (Local or Federal relay), (866) 377-8642 (Relay voice users).
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