WASHINGTON, D.C. (RFD-TV) — The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is moving forward with the second stage of disaster aid for farmers recovering from the natural disasters of 2023 and 2024, marking another significant step in the department’s broader relief rollout.
The Farm Service Agency (FSA) will begin accepting Stage Two applications for the Supplemental Disaster Relief Program (SDRP) on November 24, building on payments already distributed through earlier rounds. This phase covers crop, tree, bush, and vine losses that were not eligible under Stage One, including shallow-loss, uncovered, and quality-related damage. USDA emphasizes that the effort is designed to stabilize cash flow heading into spring planning after repeated weather shocks strained balance sheets across much of rural America.
Congress has authorized more than $16 billion for SDRP, in addition to $9.3 billion in Emergency Commodity Assistance Program (ECAP) payments and more than $705 million in Emergency Livestock Relief Program (ELRP) payments. FSA notes that producers in Connecticut, Hawaii, Maine, and Massachusetts will receive relief through state block grants rather than SDRP. Producers have until April 30, 2026, to apply for both Stage One and Stage Two assistance.
USDA is also opening enrollment for the Milk Loss Program and the On-Farm Stored Commodity Loss Program from November 24 to January 23, 2026. The milk program provides up to $1.65 million in compensation for dumped milk tied to disaster events, while the commodity program offers up to $5 million for producers who lost stored crops during 2023 or 2024 storms.
Farm-Level Takeaway: New SDRP funding and expanded loss programs give producers additional tools to rebuild cash flow and stabilize operations after two years of severe weather losses.
Tony St. James, RFD-TV Markets Specialist
Where the Food Comes From producer Donna Sanders takes us along on a behind-the-scenes look at filming the show’s newest episode, “Clemson Blue,” where university cheesemakers reveal how they put the “blue” in their award-winning blue cheese.
October 26, 2023 09:00 AM
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It is in there, the mold — those rich blue veins in creamy blue cheese that make you either love it or loathe it — but how does it get there? This bonus scene from “Clemson Dairy,” Season 4, Episode 4 of
Where the Food Comes From, explains how and why that happens.
October 25, 2023 09:00 AM
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No, it is not some new college course — Clemson has been making blue cheese since 1941, and the product has developed a worldwide following and won some pretty big awards. With good reason — it is fantastic stuff. It is also fascinating to see how it is made. Check out this sneak peek look at the latest episode of Where the Food Comes From, “Clemson Blue.”
October 24, 2023 11:32 AM
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The machines do all the work at Hickory Hill Milk in South Carolina, and the pampered cows get on-demand service. The team at Where the Food Comes From shares a special, behind-the-scenes account filming the show’s newest episode, Robot Dairy, premiering this Friday, Oct. 20, 2023, at 9:30 p.m. ET on RFD-TV!
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How does a robot milk a cow?
October 18, 2023 09:00 AM
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The machines do all the work at Hickory Hill Milk in South Carolina, where the pampered cows get on-demand service. They make a premium cream line of milk you still have to shake. It is so good it is used to make the world-famous Clemson blue cheese.
October 17, 2023 01:55 PM
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Today’s blog post by RFD-TV Agri-Legal Expert Roger McEowen takes a look at the “preferential payment rule,” a unique bankruptcy provision that can come as a suprise to farmers in financial distress.
October 13, 2023 10:54 AM
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Now that Washington lawmakers have passed a 45-day stopgap, they have some breathing room to work through some hot-button topics like the high cost of the upcoming Farm Bill, which is due in large part to the funding necessary to support the Nutrition Title.
October 03, 2023 11:08 AM
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To mark the end of National Chicken Month, we take a look at how the U.S. poultry industry is making a slow and steady recovery following the widespread outbreak of High-Path Avian Flu (HPAI) in 2022 that devastated commercial flocks across the country.
September 29, 2023 02:44 PM
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