The deadline to apply for the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program is Sept. 11, 2020. This program provides direct relief to producers who faced price declines and additional marketing costs due to COVID-19.

As of Aug. 31, 576,378 producers have been paid more $9.4 billion, with cattle producers taking nearly half of the total at $4.1 billion.

More than 160 commodities are eligible for CFAP, including certain non-specialty crops, livestock, dairy, wool, specialty crops, eggs, aquaculture, and nursery crops and cut flowers. All eligible commodities, payment rates, and calculations can be found on farmers.gov/cfap.

Livestock producers have received the majority of CFAP payments thus far, with 399,210 producers receiving 49.7% of the payments, or $4.7 billion. Non-specialty producers make up the second largest category, with $2.5 billion paid to 283,243 producers. Dairy producers comprise the third largest category, with $1.7 billion paid to 23,599 applicants.

While the top commodities for payments are cattle, milk, corn, hogs and soybeans, the bottom five are frozen eggs, $1.20; Upland/Winter Cress-UPL, $23.65; Curry Leaves-CUR, $231.75; Pomegranates, $275.00, and Marjoram-MAR, $350.53.

The top states in payment numbers are Iowa, $934.7 million; Nebraska, $678.8 million; Minnesota, $583.2 million; Texas, $561.1 million, and California, $540.7 million.

The bottom five include states and territories: Virgin Islands, $100,660; Guam, $112,705; Alaska, $129,033; Rhode Island, $190,554, and American Samoa, $465,217.

Application options

FSA offers several options for farmers and ranchers to apply for CFAP, including a call center where employees can answer questions and help producers get started on their application. Customers seeking one-on-one support with the CFAP application process can call 877-508-8364 to speak directly with a USDA employee ready to offer general assistance. This is a recommended first step before a producer engages the team at the FSA county office at their local USDA Service Center.

Producers have several options for applying to the CFAP program by the Sept. 11 deadline:

Using an online portal, accessible at gov/cfap. This allows producers with secure USDA login credentials, known as eAuthentication, to certify eligible commodities online, digitally sign applications, and submit directly to the local USDA Service Center. 

Completing the application form using our CFAP Application Generator and Payment Calculator found at gov/cfap. This Excel workbook allows customers to input information specific to their operation to determine estimated payments and populate the application form, which can be printed, then signed, and submitted to their local USDA Service Center.

Downloading the AD-3114 application form from gov/cfap and manually completing the form to submit to the local USDA Service Center by mail, electronically, or by hand delivery to an office drop box. In some limited cases, the office may be open for in-person business by appointment. Visit farmers.gov/coronavirus/service-center-status to check the status of your local office.

USDA Service Centers can also work with producers to complete and securely transmit digitally signed applications through two commercially available tools: Box and OneSpan. Producers who are interested in digitally signing their applications should notify their local service centers when calling to discuss the CFAP application process. You can learn more about these solutions at farmers.gov/mydocs.

All other eligibility forms, such as those related to adjusted gross income and payment information, can be downloaded from farmers.gov/cfap/apply. For existing FSA customers, these documents are likely already on file.

All USDA Service Centers are open for business, including some that are open to visitors to conduct business in person by appointment only. All visitors wishing to conduct business with FSA, Natural Resources Conservation Service or any other service center agency should call ahead and schedule an appointment. Service centers that are open for appointments will pre-screen visitors based on health concerns or recent travel, and visitors must adhere to social distancing guidelines. Visitors are also required to wear a face covering during their appointment.

Source: USDA