Greetings!
Kermit the Frog once said “It ain’t easy being green.” Well Kermit, it ain’t easy trying to comprehend the SUpplement REvenue (SURE) program either!
County offices are trying to dig out from under the complex program regulations while questions about the program are piling up.
Let’s just talk about some of the basic information everyone needs to be aware of.
First and foremost, it is important that you understand that a SURE “farm” is all of your acres in all of the counties in which you planted a crop or intended to plant a crop.
With that being said, your “farm” is eligible when at least a portion of the farm is located in a county that has been declared a disaster in 2008, OR the actual total production is less than 50 percent of the normal production.
In addition to this requirement, you must have suffered at least a 10 percent production loss for the year on at least one crop.
If you meet the above criteria, you must also meet the Risk Management Purchase Requirement (RMPR). This means you must meet at least one of the following:
– Have insurance or NAP coverage on all of your crops. This includes all grain and forage crops and any fruit and vegetables.
– The total revenue from a crop NOT covered by crop insurance or NAP must be less than 5 percent of the expected value of all crops.
– Meet the definition of a limited resource farmer. You can determine this by logging on to www.lrftool.sc.egov.usda.gov/tool.asp.
– Meet the definition of a beginning farmer or rancher.
Let’s say you meet both the “farm” requirement and the RMPR, you then need to contact FSA to determine if and what 2008 production records need to be provided. Some of the offices may want you to drop this information off before your appointment.
A program fact sheet for SURE is available at www.fsa.usda.gov/FSA. Because of the program complexity, its recommended that you review the fact sheet.
The more details you try to comprehend with this program, the more confusing it can become. Hey Kermit, right now I think I’d rather be green.
That’s all for now,
FSA Andy
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