Missouri farmers receive millions in bailout money

Missouri farmers have received more than $100 million in bailout money since the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced assistance in May.

The Market Facilitation Program, Food Purchase and Distribution Program and Agricultural Trade Promotion Program are relief programs put in place to assist agricultural producers.

“I think farmers are happy to get this money as opposed to not getting this money. So clearly it’s been a benefit to farmers who have received it, but a lot of farmers will tell you that they would much rather have the trading relationship restored,” said Pat Westhoff, the director of the Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute.

It’s all a part of a package that U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue details will provide $16 billion aimed at supporting American farmers while the administration continues to work on trade deals.

This comes amid the tariffs China placed on U.S. agriculture products.

“China has been our number one market by far in the past, accounting for more that half of our export sales until last year but now they’re a much smaller market. We are selling more soybeans to places like Europe and Japan but those markets aren’t nearly as big as the China market,” said Westhoff.

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the money distributed is based on 2018 plantings.

Many of the crop county payment rates are available at www.farmers.gov.

“The fact remains that there is more of an aura of uncertainty with farmers, and prices for commodities are not what they were a few ago, and so that’s affected things,” said Harrison Backer, the vice president of Wise Bros.