The Department of Agriculture’s Risk Management Agency Modifies Planting, Haying and Grazing Rules

The USDA Risk Management Agency (RMA) is changing haying and grazing requirements for cover crops by making permanent a modification that was offered to producers in July. Under the previous rule, prevented planting payments were reduced to 65% on acreage hayed, grazed, or chopped after November 1. With this change, producers may hay, graze, and chop cover crops for livestock feed and still receive full prevented planting indemnity. Additionally, the agency is making changes to its “1 in 4” requirement by adding additional practices that will quality for a producer’s land use requirement.

The RMA announced further changes including coarse grain producers’ ability to delay measurement of farm-stored production for 180 days, adding earlage and snaplage as accepted harvest methods for coarse grains, and changing the RMA’s organic definitions to be consistent with those of the USDA National Organic Program. For more information, read the press release here.