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How to Evaluate the Transition Cow Program

Picture of Dairy Cow Licking Newborn Calf
What is the transition period? The transition period is defined as the 3 weeks before calving through the 3 weeks after calving. During this time, cows “transition” from a pregnant, non-lactating state to a non-pregnant, lactating state. This event involves many coordinated physiological changes in...

Coronavirus Food Assistance Program Resources are Now Available

Combine harvesting corn. Image by Edwin Remsberg
USDA has recently announced a new program to provide assistance to growers and livestock producers who aced price declines and additional marketing costs due to COVID-19. The new Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP) will begin to signup on May 26 and close on August 28th. See https://www...

Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP): What Dairy and Beef Producers Need to Know

Photo of a dairy farm
Background: The USDA CFAP Program has allocated $16 billion in funds for direct payments to farmers to help with the fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic. The funds are derived from two sources: the Coronavirus Aid Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act and the Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC)...

Preparing Your Farm for Impacts of COVID-19

What is COVID-19? Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a respiratory disease caused by a novel coronavirus (official name: SARS-CoV-2) that was identified in 2019. This virus is responsible for the respiratory disease outbreak that began in Wuhan, China in late 2019 and quickly circulated around...

COVID-19 Resources

*Update: Maryland Farmer COVID-19 Relief Program announced 10/19/20 - Full details at Maryland Department of Agriculture National Resources Government Response to Coronavirus, COVID-19 - USA.gov Coronavirus Information and Resources - Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Protect Yourself and...

State food safety laws

Urban Ag home | Table of contents States share regulatory authority with the federal government in many areas, but states enjoy complete jurisdiction over farmers markets and other types of direct farm sales, retail sales, restaurants, and many types of small-scale agricultural production and...

Federal food safety laws

Urban Ag home | Table of contents In general, federal regulations apply to all foods that are sold in interstate commerce (meaning across state borders) or foreign commerce, and states have the power to regulate most foods that are only sold intrastate (see “What’s federalism got to do with it?”...

Market Facilitation Program Available to Assist Producers Due to Trade Disputes

Image of a cargo ship in Port of New Orleans by the United Soybean Board
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA) established the Market Facilitation Program (MFP) under Section 5 of the Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) Charter Act. This section authorizes CCC to assist in the disposition of surplus commodities and to increase the domestic...

Supplemental Coverage Option Expanding as Part of the Farm Safety Net

Photo by Edwin Remsberg The 2014 Farm Bill created Supplemental Coverage Option (SCO), a new add-on crop insurance option which provides supplemental coverage on a producer’s underlying crop insurance policy. SCO operates by mimicking a producer’s individual crop insurance coverage and covering a...

Close Encounters with Agriculture Virtual Tour

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How Will Dairy Farmers of America Settlement Impact Maryland Dairy Farmers?

Image by Edwin Remsberg This post is not legal advice On June 7, a federal district judge approved a settlement in a class action involving numerous dairy farmers in the Northeast, including many Maryland producers. Dairy Farmers of America (DFA), a national dairy cooperative, has agreed to pay a $...

2014 Farm Bill Makes Changes to the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program

The Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP) was established in 1994 and administered by USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA). NAP is a risk management tool for those producers growing crops not currently covered by a crop insurance product. NAP now offers coverage from the 50-percent level to...

Commodity Program Choices by Maryland Farmers under the 2014 Farm Bill

Photo by Edwin Remsberg The Farm Service Agency of USDA has released information on farmer signups for the three program options: Price Loss Coverage (PLC), county Agricultural Risk Coverage (ARC-CO), and individual Agricultural Risk Coverage (ARC-IC). This publication provides a quick overview of...

New Beginning Producer Crop Insurance Benefits From 2014 Farm Bill

Photo by Edwin Remsberg, MDA I have previously highlighted the beginning farmer benefits in the Non-Insured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP); see 2014 Farm Bill Makes Changes to the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program . But the 2014 Farm Bill also contains new beginning producer...

Supplemental Coverage Option Now a Part of the Federal Crop Insurance Program

Photo by Edwin Remsberg
Introduction The 2014 Farm Bill created Supplemental Coverage Option (SCO), a new add-on crop insurance option which provides supplemental coverage on a producer’s underlying crop insurance policy. SCO operates by mimicking a producer’s individual crop insurance coverage and increasing the...

High Beef Prices

Meat Case
Ag Marketing - News Update Retail beef prices are at a 20 year high. I have been asked why? Why is beef so high? The reasons: Less beef in the US due to drought/weather. We are exporting more beef and increasing imports of more lower quality beef to be made into ground beef. The drought from 2...
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