natural disasters

One fourth of the $99 billion in disaster aid requested by President Biden would be funneled through the USDA, with the bulk of the $24 billion devoted to offsetting lost crop production and reduced quality of crops. Agriculture deputy secretary Xochitl Torres Small was to testify in support of the request before the Senate Appropriations Committee on Wednesday.

Payments totaling $235 million are being issued this week to producers hit by natural disasters, including Hurricane Milton in Florida, said the Agriculture Department. The payments make up the bulk of $375 million in spending announced for various USDA programs on Wednesday.

The USDA will work with farmers and rural communities to help them recover from “significant” losses caused by Hurricane Helene, said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack on Thursday. As an example, he said, “We’re working with crop insurance companies now to expedite payments so farmers will receive help in November, if not sooner.”

Row crop and specialty crop growers are eligible for more than $3 billion from the Emergency Relief Program (ERP) to offset losses from natural disasters in 2022, said the USDA. Administrator Zach Ducheneaux of the Farm Services Agency said 2022 "was another year of weather-related challenges — for some, the third consecutive year or more in a row."

In the six weeks since the USDA launched the program, farmers have received $4 billion from the Emergency Relief Program as compensation for losses from wildfire, drought, hurricanes, winter storms, and other natural disasters, said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack on Wednesday.

Spring rains and melting snow are helping to create the potential for major or moderate flooding in 25 states, with the greatest threat in the northern Plains and the upper Mississippi River basin, said NOAA in a spring outlook issued on Thursday.

Federal disaster assistance is available for recovery efforts in Nebraska following President Trump’s declaration of a major disaster in the state, said the White House on Thursday. The USDA said farmers and ranchers should contact their local USDA office to see if they qualify for assistance.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) ranked 2017 as the most expensive year ever for natural disasters in the United States, reported the Washington Post. Hurricanes, wildfires and other catastrophes caused a combined $306 billion in damage, with 16 events that cost $1 billion apiece.

Nearly one-fourth of the damage from natural disasters in the developing world is inflicted on agriculture, says a study by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization.

The Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP), which protects commodities not covered by crop insurance, is being modified to increase access for beginning, limited-resource and other producers who do not have risk protection from...