U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA) announced that ranchers and livestock producers in 51 Tennessee counties can apply for assistance from the Livestock Forage Disaster Program (LFP) for grazing losses incurred in 2023.
“Continued drought conditions have triggered availability of the Livestock Forage Disaster Program in additional counties since we announced the first round of counties impacted by drought at the beginning of November,” said John Litz, State Executive Director. “We now have a total of 51 counties that are eligible for this assistance program. We encourage producers to contact their local service center for an appointment and to learn what records they need to have on hand in order to apply for assistance.”
Eligible counties include: Anderson, Bedford, Bledsoe, Blount, Bradley, Cannon, Chester, Coffee, Cumberland, Davidson, Decatur, DeKalb, Fayette, Franklin, Giles, Grundy, Hardeman, Hardin, Haywood, Henderson, Hickman, Knox, Lawrence, Lewis, Lincoln, Loudon, McMinn, McNairy, Madison, Marion, Marshall, Maury, Meigs, Monroe, Moore, Morgan, Perry, Polk, Rhea, Roane, Rutherford, Sequatchie, Shelby, Tipton, Van Buren, Warren, Wayne, White, Williamson, and Wilson.
Litz said the program covers full season improved pasture. LFP provides compensation to livestock producers who have suffered grazing losses due to drought. Qualifying drought ratings are determined using the U.S. Drought Monitor located at droughtmonitor.unl.edu.
Eligible livestock include alpacas, beef cattle, buffalo/bison, beefalo, dairy cattle, deer, elk, emus, equine, goats, llamas, ostrich, reindeer or sheep that have been or would have been grazing the eligible grazing land or pastureland during the normal grazing period.
An acceptable crop acreage report filed by the applicable deadline, application for payment and supporting documentation are required. To expedite applications, producers who experienced losses in 2023 are encouraged to collect records documenting their losses. Supporting documents may include information related to grazing leases or federal grazing permits, contract grower agreements and more. Applications for 2023 losses will be accepted through Jan. 30, 2024.
For more information, contact your local county FSA office. Additional USDA disaster assistance information can be found on farmers.gov/recover.