Hello,
This message is for producers, or anyone working with producers, and includes time sensitive information about the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program 2 (CFAP2), a relief program for agricultural producers who continue to face market disruptions and associated costs because of COVID-19. USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) is accepting CFAP2 applications until December 11, 2020--NEXT FRIDAY!!
Did you apply for the first round of CFAP support and not get it, or were you overwhelmed with the process? The good news is the application for this second round has been simplified and is more accessible for specialty crop and diversified producers.
Michigan Food and Farming Systems (MIFFS) is available to help get you started on your application. For more information, please call (517) 709-8271 or email [log in to unmask], and for support in Spanish please call Filiberto Villa-Gomez at (269) 830-2309 or email [log in to unmask]
General information about the program is available at https://www.farmers.gov/cfap
CFAP2 FAQ https://www.farmers.gov/cfap/faq
HOW TO APPLY
Application Deadline is December 11, 2020
Producers with questions or who need assistance can make an appointment with FSA to review their application before submitting it; producers can also call a national hotline (see below) with questions. While farmers are not required to book an appointment with FSA prior to submitting their app, they are encouraged to do so if they have any questions or are a new customer.
STEP 1: Review the eligibility criteria to determine if you can and should apply. Use the USDA payment calculator tool to estimate your payment: https://www.farmers.gov/sites/default/files/documents/CFAP2-PaymentCalculator-09242020.xls
STEP 2: If you have questions or would like to talk your application over before submitting it, either: call the producer hotline (see below) with questions or call your local FSA office for an appointment (even if you are not 100% sure you will apply). An FSA office locator is available at https://www.farmers.gov/service-center-locator
STEP 3: Complete all forms and begin compiling necessary records.
Reminder: supporting documentation is not required to apply, but may be requested by FSA later as part of a spot check verification. If supporting documentation is requested to verify the information specified on the application, the producer must provide records that substantiate the reported information. Supporting documentation that a producer may use to substantiate the acres, sales, inventory, or production reported, includes copies of receipts, ledgers of income, income statements of deposit slips, veterinarian records, register tapes, invoices for custom harvesting, and records to verify production costs, contemporaneous measurements, truck scale tickets, or contemporaneous diaries that are determined acceptable by USDA. See more info in the guide from FLAG (Farmers' Legal Action Group) here: http://www.flaginc.org/covid-19-guide/
STEP 4: Submit your application before December 11, 2020 through your local FSA, at your USDA Service Center, or online. FSA staff at your local USDA Service Center will work with producers to file applications. Applications may be submitted via mail, fax, hand delivery, or via electronic means.
If you have an eAuthentication account with USDA, you can apply online for CFAP2 at the portal: https://apps.fsa.usda.gov/cfap2/index.jsp
If you do not have an eAuthentication account with USDA, you can create one with the USDA office. More information is on the page https://www.farmers.gov/sign-in (scroll down to create new account). You will need to contact the service center to set up an account, use the service center locator here: https://www.farmers.gov/service-center-locator
A call center is available for producers who would like additional one-on-one support with the CFAP 2 application process. Please call 877-508-8364 to speak directly with a USDA employee ready to offer assistance. The call center can provide service to non-English speaking customers. Customers will select 1 for English and 2 to speak with a Spanish speaking employee. For other languages, customers select 1 and indicate their language to the Call Center staff. For more information on the application process, please visit the CFAP 2 FAQ page at https://www.farmers.gov/cfap/faq. For additional resources on how to apply, including several hotlines with people eager to assist you in your application, please visit our website: https://www.miffs.org/cfap-2
If you are in need of relief funds we strongly encourage you to apply, whether your production is urban or rural, small or large-scale, nonprofit or for profit. Please share this widely and let us know if there is anything MIFFS can do to support you!
Thanks!
The MIFFS Team
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