USDA Farm Service Agency Extends Coronavirus Food Assistance Program 2 For Grapes And Other AG Commodities

POSTED BY Christopher J. Passarelli

Agricultural producers facing continued market disruption due to COVID-19 can apply for the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program 2 (CFAP 2) now through December 11, 2020.

President Trump and U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced this expansion of the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program on September 17, 2020. The program continues to provide producers with financial assistance that gives them the ability to absorb some of the increased marketing costs associated with the COVID-19 pandemic.

 Payment rates for commodities that are eligible for Coronavirus Food Assistance Program 2 (including grapes) are found HERE.

By way of example, CFAP 2 payments for sales of specialty crops (i.e., grapes) are based on the producer’s 2019 sales of eligible commodities in a declining block format using the following payment factors, and will be equal to the amount of the producer’s eligible sales in calendar year 2019, multiplied by the payment rate for that range.

2019 Sales Range	Percent Payment Factor for the Producer's 2019 Sales of Eligible Commodities Falling in the Range
$0 to $49,999	10.6%
$50,000 to $99,999	9.9%
$100,000 to $499,999	9.7%
$500,000 to $999,999	9.0%
Sales over $1 million	8.8%

Payments for specialty crop producers who began farming in 2020 and had no sales in 2019 will be based on the producer’s actual 2020 sales as of the producer’s application date.

Only raw commodities grown by the producer are eligible for the program. The portion of sales derived from adding value to the commodity, such as processing and packaging, and from sales of products purchased for resale, is not included in the payment calculation.

More information, including online application and additional resources are found HERE.

The first CFAP, had an application period of May 26 through September 11, 2020. More information about CFAP 1 is found HERE.