USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA) reminds producers to report prevented planting and failed acres to establish or retain FSA program eligibility for some programs.
Producers should report crop acreage they intended to plant, but, due to natural disaster, were prevented from planting. Prevented planting acreage must be reported on form CCC-576, Notice of Loss, no later than 15 calendar days after the final planting date as established by USDA Risk Management Agency (RMA).
Final crop planting dates for Tallahatchie County are:
• Corn: April 25
• Grain Sorghum: May 15
• Cotton: May 25
• Rice: May 25
• Peanuts: May 31
• Soybeans: June 15
If a producer is unable to report the prevented planting acreage within the 15 calendars days and does not allow an FSA representative to visit the farm and inspect the acreage and cause of loss timely, then approved prevented planting acreage credit from FSA is highly unlikely.
Additionally, producers with failed acres (acreage planted that will not be carried to harvest due to natural disaster) should also use form CCC-576, Notice of Loss, to report failed acres. The notice of loss should be filed within 15 days of the loss becoming apparent to the producer and before the evidence of the failed crop is destroyed. Failure to report timely to FSA before destruction of the evidence of the crop will prevent the producer from receiving any failed acreage credit. Failed acreage that is planted back, replanted, to the same crop does not need to be reported to FSA.
Producers of hand-harvested crops and certain perishables must notify FSA of damage or loss through the administrative county office within 72 hours of the date of damage or loss first becomes apparent. This notification can be provided by filing a CCC-576, email, fax or phone. Producers who notify the county office by any method other than by filing the CCC-576 are still required to file a CCC-576, Notice of Loss, within the required 15 calendar days.
For losses on other crops covered by the Non-Insured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP), producers must file a Notice of Loss within 15 days of the occurrence of the disaster or when losses become apparent.
For more information, contact the Tallahatchie County FSA office at 662-647-8857, ext. 2.
