The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is issuing up to $10 billion to agricultural producers through the Emergency Commodity Assistance Program (ECAP) for the 2024 crop year.
The ECAP, administered by USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA), is designed to help agricultural producers mitigate the impacts of increased input costs and falling commodity prices.
“Producers are facing higher costs and market uncertainty, and the Trump Administration is ensuring they get the support they need without delay,” U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins said. “With clear direction from Congress, USDA has prioritized streamlining the process and accelerating these payments ahead of schedule, ensuring farmers have the resources necessary to manage rising expenses and secure financing for next season.”
These economic relief payments are based on planted and prevented planted crop acres for eligible commodities. To streamline the process, FSA will begin sending pre-filled applications to producers who submitted acreage reports to FSA for 2024 eligible ECAP commodities after the signup period opens on March 19. Producers do not have to wait for their pre-filled ECAP application to apply, as they can visit fsa.usda.gov/ecap to apply using a login.gov account.
The commodities below are eligible for these per-acre payment rates: Wheat, Corn, Canola, Sorghum, Crambe, Barley, Flax, Oats, Mustard, Upland cotton and Extra-long staple cotton, Rapeseed, Long and medium grain rice, Safflower, Peanuts, Sesame, Soybeans, Sunflower, Dry peas, Lentils, Small Chickpeas, and Large Chickpeas.
Producers must submit ECAP applications to their local FSA county office by Aug. 15. Only one application is required for all ECAP eligible commodities nationwide. ECAP applications can be submitted to FSA in-person or online utilizing a secure login.gov account.