Oklahoma farmers and ranchers would be in a dire situation without the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program, Oklahoma Farm Bureau President Rodd Moesel told the Journal Record in a recent story.
“In Oklahoma, (CFAP) has probably helped even more than in some other places,” Moesel said in the story. “A lot of farmers would be in much worse shape without it.”
Moesel explained that Oklahoma’s cattle producers experienced a drop of at least $100 per head in April after COVID-19 caused slowdowns in processing plants and disruptions to the supply chain. Many Oklahoma producers were already struggling before the global pandemic hit because of trade wars, weather, depressed prices and other difficulties.
“It would have been catastrophic, I would say (without the federal intervention),” he said in the story. “The impact even now is going to be more than just a blip. Every operation is digging into savings or going deeper into debt.”
More than $250 million in direct payments has been distributed to 29,442 Oklahoma farmers and ranchers through CFAP, according to Scott Biggs of the USDA Farm Service Agency.
Created through the Coronavirus Assistance, Relief and Economic Security Act and coordinated by the USDA, CFAP direct payments are designed to provide relief to eligible farmers and ranchers facing financial losses due to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Applications are due by Aug. 28.
