Bill Northey

USDA Undersecretary for Farm Production and Conservation Bill Northey said more than 5,000 dairy operations have signed up for the new Dairy Margin Coverage Program. The exact number was 5,364 as of last Thursday afternoon. Northey said about 40,000 dairy operations are eligible to enroll, but overall he’s pleased with the number of producers who’ve signed up since June 17.   Th...

The USDA said a trade mitigation package or what the agency called a farming support package, will be forthcoming shortly.   “One of our criteria is not to influence planting decisions,” said USDA undersecretary Bill Northy.  “So whatever w...

If you are planning on taking out a USDA farm loan, the amount of money you can borrow is most likely higher than what you would have seen a year ago.  Undersecretary of Agriculture Bill Northey said the top dollar allowed under many of the loans has not changed for several years, even though farming has become more expensive.  ...

The USDA says a host of federal agencies are working together to ensure everyone is on the same page when it comes to water and water conservation.  Undersecretary Bill Northey told the National Association of State directors of Agriculture earlier this month that Federal Government Agencies are working to coordinate their efforts. ...

The USDA will hold a listening session for input on implementation of the 2018 Farm Bill.  USDA is seeking public input on the changes to existing programs implemented by the Farm Service Agency, Natural Resources Conservation Service and the Risk Management Agency.  Each ag...

Thanks to the Government shutdown, many FSA program signup deadlines have been extended to February 14th.  The USDA’s Bill Northey said it’s not just the Market Facilitation Program that producers can sign up for.   “There are several different programs that to be able to qualify for losses that occurred in 2018, either folks need to turn in information by the end of January or a deadline of that

A senior USDA official says the amount of money sent to farmers to help mitigate the financial damage from the trade war may not be as much as expected.  An Agriculture.com article quotes USDA Under Secretary Bill Northey as saying up to two-thirds of the Trump trade aid payments were made by early January.  Northey...

The USDA is making payments to producers and landowners via a variety of programs.  While the 2014 Farm Bill has expired, the program payments have not.   "We're actually in between Farm Bills right now, but we still operating under the last farm bill's coverage of 2017 crop year and 2018 crop year," Agriculture Undersecretary for Farm Production and Conservation Bill Northey.   ... Read

In the wake of Hurricane Michael, there is one tool the USDA is promoting to help connect Ag producers with their needed crop insurance.   "Most of the crops have a fairly high coverage level. Pecans does not have as high a coverage level, some areas, soy beans are not covered as high, maybe 50 to 70% of the crops.”  S...

With the holidays drawing closer, good news for one of your favorite deserts.   On Tuesday, the USDA announced additional assistance for pecan growers to replant and replace trees through the Tree Assistance Program.  Pecan growers are recovering from weather events in 2017, and the funding through the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2018 will help the industry recover and replace lost and dama