Missouri U.S. Senators Claire McCaskill and Roy Blunt have requested drought assistance from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to release additional acreage for haying and grazing.
Sen. McCaskill-D (left) and Sen. Blunt-R(right)
“Missouri farmers and ranchers are enduring the most troubling period of severe drought we have seen since 2012,” the Senators have written in a letter to U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue. “Farmers throughout our state are already seeing record low yields, delivering yet another blow to farm communities after years of declining farm incomes.”
The Senators are urging the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to approve requests to release Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) acreage for haying and grazing.
The letter continues, “During a time of record low farm incomes, Missouri farm families need swift answers, not bureaucratic delay and red tape. It is our hope that USDA’s timely assistance will get Missouri’s agriculture community back on its feet.”
They also want approval of the Missouri Farm Service Agency’s request for special authority to release CRP acreage covered by additional conservation practices for haying and grazing. The release would provide immediate access to feedstock for Missouri livestock producers.
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