With less than one month left for the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program sign-up, the USDA has distributed $6.5 billion. It’s unknown if the entire $16 billion allocated for the program will be distributed. Farm Service Agency Administrator Richard Fordyce said there could be a few reasons why sign-up isn’t stronger at this time. “There’s also a lot of acreage reporting taking place right now and once this has finished up, we anticipate the CFAP applications to ramp up a little bit.” There will be spot checks for farmers who have signed up for the program once the August 28 deadline has passed. “These are random and if you’re a livestock producer that sold 100 head, we’ll need proof you sold 100 head during that time,” said Fordyce. “If there is a spot check, our staff will work with farmers to get the right documentation, helping them understand what the documentation needs to be.” Hear the interview.
