USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) announced it has suspended processing and payments under the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP) and has halted implementation until further notice.
American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall said that payments should be resumed as quickly as possible in a news release. “The pandemic has taken an unprecedented toll on American agriculture, and the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program has provided a lifeline for farmers and ranchers across the country,” Duvall said.
During the regulatory review, FSA stated the agency would “take additional steps to bring relief and support to all parts of food and agriculture during the coronavirus pandemic.”
Incoming Senate Agriculture Committee Chairwoman Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) stated as someone who wrote the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, there were things Congress told USDA “that they should do that they did not do.”
FSA’s local offices will continue to accept applications during the evaluation period.
