Table Of ContentHistoric, Archive Document
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WELCOME TO THE
The Farm Service Agency (FSA) is the U.S. Department of Agriculture's principal agency
charged with promoting a stable and abundant American food supply. This objective is
best met by supporting America's production agriculture community and helping protect
the Nation's food and natural resources.
FSA serves the public by providing all
farmers and ranchers access and
opportunity to participate in farm
commodity,credit, conservation,envi-
ronmental, and emergency assistance
programs. Through these activities,
FSA supports the USDA mission and
The Farm Service helps ensure a healthful, stable,acces-
Agency helps ensure sible, and affordable food supply. The national FSA office guides State
Through these programs, FSA also fos- and county offices in their implemen-
the well-being of ters good land stewardship,which tation ofprograms legislated by
American agriculture will help preserve our agricultural Congress. Farmers and ranchers who
prosperity for generations to come. are eligible for FSA programs nomi-
and the American
nate and elect representatives from
public through effi- their peers in the local community to
serve on the local FSA Count}-
cient and equitable
Committee. This extensive county-
administration of based structure provides us a unique
farm commodity, position from which to serve rural
America.
farm loan, conserva-
tion, emergency
FSA is dedicated to:
assistance, and
domestic and inter- • Serving our customers through effectiveprogram delivery;
• Following sound managementpolicies andfinancialprocedures;
national food assis-
• Providingfair and equitable treatment ofcustomers and employees;
tance programs.
• Ensuringproducer compliance withprogramprovisions;
• Promoting land and natural resource stewardship;
• Providing charitablefood distribution;and
• Meetingfuture challenges and opportunities.
Serving All Americans
Strengthening
Protecting
Reaching
Sharing
Implementing
Focusing
FSA responds to rapidly changing farm markets and agricultural policies by
focusing on producer needs.
The key to FSA's success is the development ofpolicies and procedures that
implement commodity and conservation program statutes.
FSA is continuously making improvements in farm programs to ensure they are
administered cost-effectively and equitably.
"Program payments
Farm Programs Help
help me manage my Producers Manage
overall financial risk Market Risks
and give me marketing
options v/ould not oth- Under the 2002 FarmAct,FSA helps
I
erwise have. In short, farmers manage market risk through
these farm programs several key programs,including mar-
have helped keep my keting loans, direct payments, and Farmers may also apply for Farm
countercyclical payments. Storage Facilit)' Loans to construct or
business on a sound
renovate storage structures,or to
footing." FSA offers a marketing assistance loan install grain handling and drjing
equipment.
program so farmers have an alterna-
Brian Taliaferro, tive to selling crops at harvest when
Center Cross, Virginia prices tend to be seasonally low. To provide income stability", FSA
makes direct payments to farmers
Farmers can receive a loan using their and eligible landowners in the form
crops as collateral. Repayment is typi- of annual, fixed direct payments.
cally made after a rise in prices. If When prices drop below specified
prices fall,the producer can generally levels, FSA also makes countercyclical
repay the loan at the low prevailing payments to producers to offset lost
market price. market income.To be eligible for
these farm programs, producers must
use approved conservation practices
and meet other land stewardship
requirements.
2 Serving Ail Americans
4
Sonny Pourier, a
Native American
rancher, came to FSA
in need of financing.
At the time, o bank
was about to foreclose
on his operation.
Times were tough, and
the previous spring got
the best of him with
late blizzards, which
caused a high livestock
death loss. When
Sonny contacted FSA
in South Dakota, he
Disaster Assistance Helps had 25 cows, 1
Producers Manage replacement heifers,
Weather Risks and 12 calves. He
was trying to make
ends meet by taking in
When disaster strikes, FSA reacts The Emergency Conservation some pasture cattle.
promptly to help producers recover Program (ECP) shares with agricultur-
their noninsurable crop losses. The al producers in the cost ofrehabilitat- Working with on FSA
Noninsured Crop Disaster ing farmlands damaged by natural form loan manager.
Assistance Program (NAP) is federal- disaster.During severe drought, ECP Sonny learned how his
business could operate
ly funded and provides financial also pr—ovides emergency water assis- more efficiently.
assistance to producers affected by tance both for livestock and for Together, they set goals
natural disasters. existing orchard and vineyard irriga- and developed a busi-
tion systems. ness plan. Sonny
applied for and
Conservation Reserve Program received a direct oper-
acreage can also be made available for ating loon from FSA.
emergency haying and grazing situa-
Five years later.
tions. In addition, FSA also provides Sonny's operation had
^Americans spend around 7 7 emergency loans to help producers grown to 1 16 cows,
recover from production and physical 5 bulls, and 17 year-
percent of their disposable losses due to drought,flooding,other lings. Sonny says,
income on food^ the lowest natural disasters, or quarantines. "hlonesty, pride, hard
work, and working
percentage in the world. with FSA's loan officer
contributed to my suc-
cess."
Serving All Americans 3
|
TEACHING KIDS
RESPONSIBILITY
In Utah, FSA helped an
eager high-school stu-
Farm Loan Programs Help
dent start his own cattle Producers Manage Credit
business. After receiv- Needs
ing a Youth Loan, the FSA makes direct loans to producers
young man is gradually Farming in the 21st century is a to finance farm ownership and oper-
ating expenses, and to provide need-
building his herd and, sophisticated business requiring sub-
in the process, learning stantial resources and extensive man- ed capital in times ofemergency. FSA
the skills he will need to agement skills. FSA makes and guar- sets aside a percentage offunds for
antees loans and provides credit coun- loans to minority applicants and
be an effective rancher. seling and supervision to farmers and beginning farmers.
He says, "I think this ranchers who are temporarily unable
loan is a good idea to obtain private, commercial credit. In addition to loaning money, FSA pro-
because it teaches kids vides credit counseling and helps bor-
how to manage money, Many FSA loan applicants are begin- rowers manage their debt and repay-
responsibility, and how ning farmers who do not qualify for ment schedules.
to work." conventional loans because ofinsuffi-
cient net worth. Other applicants are
established farmers who have suf-
fered financial setbacks from natural
disasters or economic downturns.
Developing Tomorrow's Leaders
FSA is a strong bridge in helping rural youth to grow both personally and pro-
fessionally in preparation for becoming tomorrow's leaders in agriculture. FSA
offers special loans ofup to $5,000 for rural youths. To qualif>' for a loan, an
applicant must be a U.S. citizen; be between 10 and 20 years old; live in a
town of less than 10,000 people; be unable to obtain a loan from other
sources; and conduct a modest income-producing project in a supervised pro-
gram ofwork.
4 Serving All Americans
YOUTH LOAN HELPS BUILD HERD
There aren't many 16-year-old girls in Connecticut who assist in the birthing
process of lambs, which makes Rachael Gately no ordinary teenager. Starting
with three ewes and two ewe lambs in 1998, she has tripled her flock every
year. She shows her sheep at fairs throughout New England and uses her
winnings and youth loan to purchase supplies and grow her operation.
Serving All Americans 5
PffOTFCTING TMP gMVIPOMMi=MT
FSA protects America's natural resources by reducing soil erosion on millions of farm-
land acres, improving air and water quality, and increasing wildlife fiabitat.
FSA administers conservation and
environmental programs and activities The Conservation Reserve
to conserve our Nation's natural EnhancementProgram (CREP) is an
resources,including land,water, air, offspring ofCRP. CREP is a voluntary
and wildlife. program for agricultural landowners
in which State priorities drive pro-
The Conservation Reserve Program gram enrollment. State and Federal
(CRP) is a voluntary program for agri- partnerships allow participants to
cultural landowners. Through CRP, receive incentive payments for
landowners receive annual rental pay- installing specific conservation prac-
Trees on CRP land ments to put farmland into environ- tices. Through CREP, farmers can
remove on estimated mentally friendly conservation uses. receive annual rental payments and
3.7 million tons of They also receive cost-share assis- cost-share assistance to establish long-
tance to establish long-term, resource- term conservation measures on land.
carbon per year from
conserving practices.
the atmosphere.
Eligible farmers and ranchers may also
enroll their land in filter strips,ripari-
CRP provides environ- an buffers,grass waterways, and other
mental benefits estimated similar practices at any time. These
to total more than $2 practices protect fragile streams and
billion per year. rivers from eroding soil and chemical
runoff The Environmental Quality
Incentives Program (EQIP), which is
Since its inception in
administered by the Natural
1986, CRP has pro-
Resources Conservation Service,
duced dramatic offers financial and technical assis-
improvements in the tance to participants who install or
health and size of implement structural and manage-
wildlife populations. ment practices that help reach con-
servation goals.
6 Serving All Americans
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