STARTING from September the US Department of Agriculture will implement its strategy to help farmers who have taken a hit financially from countries, especially China, that are responding to US import tariffs by introducing retaliatory tariffs of their own.
The USDA announced in July that it will authorise as much as US$12 billion in numerous relief programmes intended to ease the plight of the nation's farmers.
However, many farmers fear that the USDA's trade mitigation plan is a drop in the bucket to resolving the financial hardships already being experienced by the loss of US export market opportunities resulting from the retaliatory tariffs overseas, reported American Shipper.
As part of the relief programmes, the USDA's Farm Service Agency (FSA) will administer the Market Facilitation Programme (MFP) to provide payments to corn, cotton, dairy, hog, sorghum, soybean and wheat producers, effective from September 4.
Second, the department's Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) will administer a Food Purchase and Distribution Programme to purchase up to $1.2 billion in US agricultural commodities affected by the retaliatory tariffs. These commodities will be distributed through the USDA's Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) to nutrition assistance programmes, including The Emergency Food Assistance Programme (TEFAP) and child nutrition programmes.
Lastly, the USDA's Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) will use its Agricultural Trade Promotion Programme (ATP) to make available $200 million to encourage the development of overseas markets for US agricultural products.
'It's important to note all of this could go away tomorrow, if China and the other nations simply correct their behaviour,' Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue was quoted as saying. 'But in the meantime, the programmes we are announcing today buys time for the president to strike long-lasting trade deals to benefit our entire economy.'
The USDA announced in July that it will authorise as much as US$12 billion in numerous relief programmes intended to ease the plight of the nation's farmers.
However, many farmers fear that the USDA's trade mitigation plan is a drop in the bucket to resolving the financial hardships already being experienced by the loss of US export market opportunities resulting from the retaliatory tariffs overseas, reported American Shipper.
As part of the relief programmes, the USDA's Farm Service Agency (FSA) will administer the Market Facilitation Programme (MFP) to provide payments to corn, cotton, dairy, hog, sorghum, soybean and wheat producers, effective from September 4.
Second, the department's Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) will administer a Food Purchase and Distribution Programme to purchase up to $1.2 billion in US agricultural commodities affected by the retaliatory tariffs. These commodities will be distributed through the USDA's Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) to nutrition assistance programmes, including The Emergency Food Assistance Programme (TEFAP) and child nutrition programmes.
Lastly, the USDA's Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) will use its Agricultural Trade Promotion Programme (ATP) to make available $200 million to encourage the development of overseas markets for US agricultural products.
'It's important to note all of this could go away tomorrow, if China and the other nations simply correct their behaviour,' Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue was quoted as saying. 'But in the meantime, the programmes we are announcing today buys time for the president to strike long-lasting trade deals to benefit our entire economy.'