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Timeline for next round of trade aid taking shape

The next round of trade mitigation payments could commence in the next month.

Agri-Pulse reports USDA undersecretary Bill Northey recently said the Department is committed to getting checks to producers, maybe by mid-August.

National Farmers Union senior government relations representative Jenny Hopkinson calls the first round of trade aid reactionary and tells Brownfield she’s concerned round two will be rushed as well.

“We appreciate the support, but certainly we don’t think it’s been enough. And we think the solution to all of this isn’t in the individual trade aid packages, but in kind of a broader look at how our system is working. This (trade war) is just exposing the holes in it.”

The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) says it finished its review of the new trade mitigation proposal Friday.  Northey told Agri-Pulse its possible farmers could begin signing up by the end of July.

One criticism of the initial Market Facilitation Program was that it favored certain commodities.

Ag economist David Widmar with Ag Economic Insights says information from USDA on MFP2 has been painfully slow.  But based on what is known, he’s concerned soybeans will again drive a large share of the payments.  Widmar also predicts a wide variation of county payment rates.

President Trump has pledged $16 billion to help farmers impacted by the trade war with China.