USDA designates Iowa counties as disaster areas; eligible for loans

    REGIONAL -- Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue has designated 10 Iowa counties as primary natural disaster areas.
    Producers in Buena Vista, Hamilton, Harrison, Ida, Madison, Monona, Pocahontas, Polk, Pottawattamie and Story counties who suffered losses caused recent drought may be eligible for U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA) emergency loans.
    This natural disaster designation allows FSA to extend much-needed emergency credit to producers recovering from natural disasters.  Emergency loans can be used to meet various recovery needs including the replacement of essential items such as equipment or livestock, reorganization of a farming operation or the refinance of certain debts.
    Producers in the contiguous counties are also eligible to apply for emergency loans, including Shelby County.
    The deadline to apply for these emergency loans is May 10, 2021.
    FSA will review the loans based on the extent of losses, security available and repayment ability.
    FSA has a variety of additional programs to help farmers recover from the impacts of this disaster. FSA programs that do not require a disaster declaration include:
•  Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honeybees and Farm-Raised Fish Program
•  Emergency Conservation Program
•  Livestock Forage Disaster Program
•  Livestock Indemnity Program
•  Operating and Farm Ownership Loans
•  Tree Assistance Program
    Farmers may contact their local USDA service center for further information on eligibility requirements and application procedures for these and other programs. Additional information is also available online at farmers.gov/recover.