By: NICOLAS FIERRO
Salina Post
After the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced on Tuesday, $12 billion in one-time farmer bridge payments will go to American farmers next year, it is highly unlikely local Kernza farmers will receive the benefit.
Kernza, a perennial grain developed at the Land Institute in Salina, most likely won't receive the federal funding.
A Salina Kernza farmer stated the perennial grain is too "novel," to have the figures where there is projected lost income from commodities.
However, there are ways Kernza farmers can still receive federal support. This can be done for planting perennials including Kernza, through the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS).
Plus at the University of Minnesota, there is a substantial budget for "Forever Green Crops," which includes Kernza as well. This initiative is focused on developing new crops to ensure agricultural production, and strengthen economies while protecting water and other natural resources.
Background of the $12 billion one-time farmer bridge payments
The $11 billion will be used for those farmers under the Farmer Bridge Assistance (FBA) Program , which provides broad relief to US row crop farmers who produce Barley, Chickpeas, Corn, Cotton, Lentils, Oats, Peanuts, Peas, Rice, Sorghum, Soybeans, Wheat, Canola, Crambe, Flax, Mustard, Rapeseed, Safflower, Sesame and Sunflower.
FBA will help address market disruptions, elevated input costs, persistent inflation, struggles from droughts and market losses from foreign competitors engaging in unfair trade practices that impede export. The FBA Program applies simple, proportional support to producers using a uniform formula to cover a portion of modeled losses during the 2025 crop year.
Farmers who qualify for the FBA Program can expect payments to be released by February 28, 2026. Eligible farmers should ensure their 2025 acreage reporting is factual and accurate by 5:00 pm ET on December 19, 2025.
Commodity-specific payment rates will be released by the end of the month.
The remaining $1 billion will be available for commodities not covered in the FBA program. This includes specialty crops and sugar, for example.
US Senator Jerry Moran (Kan.), a member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry, gave his comments on the $12 billion provided for American farmers.
“Years of drought, high input costs and trade uncertainty have created economic hardships for American farmers,” said Sen. Moran. “This package is a necessity that will help farmers weather the current uncertainty while the administration works to increase markets for farmers to sell their crops. I look forward to continuing to work with my colleagues on the Senate Agriculture Committee and with the administration to make certain we are providing farmers and ranchers with the resources they need to continue feeding, fueling and clothing the world, and maintaining their businesses and livelihoods.”
Sen. Moran added the USDA will have a formula to determine the payment per acre, which will be decided later this month based upon the cost of production, price and yield.
Moreover, Sen. Moran does not think the $12 billion will completely offset the financial strains farmers have faced this year.
“When China is not buying agriculture commodities, it’s really hard to fill that gap,” he said. “At least in Kansas and many places have had long-term drought, our farmers are just not prepared for another year of significant circumstances. We will continue to be the advocates for the row and specialty crops, to try to make sure there is money available to keep our farmers in business.”
To submit questions, justification for USDA farmer bridge aid, or to request a meeting on farmer bridge aid, producers can reach out to [email protected].