United States Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue has designated Mobile and Baldwin Counties as primary natural disaster areas due to drought suffered in recent months.
The designation means area agriculture producers may apply for assistance from the Farm Services Agency, including emergency loans.
Federal rules stipulate that all counties which border a designated disaster area qualify for assistance as well, meaning that in Alabama, farmers from Clarke, Escambia, Monroe and Washington Counties are also in the running for federal assistance if needed.
Escambia County in Florida and George, Green and Jackson Counties in Mississippi are included by the same measure.
The declaration from the federal government comes as the two southwest Alabama counties suffered several weeks of drought during prime growing season.
According to the National Agricultural Statistics Service, Baldwin County has 174,803 acres of farmland split among 842 farms, and Mobile County has 94,944 acres between 653 farms.
Farmers in all the eligible counties have eight months from the day of Secretary Perdue’s declaration to apply for emergency loans.
The secretary’s letter to Governor Kay Ivey informing her of the declaration is dated June 10, 2020.
According to a release, the Farm Services Agency “considers each emergency loan application on its own merits, taking into account the extent of production losses on the farm and the security and repayment ability of the operator.”
Alabama’s farmers can find their nearest Farm Services Agency office here.
Henry Thornton is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You can contact him by email: [email protected] or on Twitter @HenryThornton95
Don’t miss out! Subscribe today to have Alabama’s leading headlines delivered to your inbox.