Public assistance has been approved for farmers in Massachusetts who suffered heavy crop losses and damage due to extreme weather this year.
A $20 million state-financed relief fund has been authorized that is intended to aid farmers in western and central Massachusetts who were affected by last month’s torrential rain-triggered flooding and also ones whose plantings were killed by a deep freeze last February and a late frost in May.
Additionally, it was announced Tuesday that the U.S. Department of Agriculture designated seven counties in Massachusetts as primary natural disaster areas because of losses caused by excessive rain and flooding from July 9 – July 16. The four western counties plus Worcester are included in the disaster designation along with Bristol and Norfolk counties in southeastern Massachusetts.
This USDA designation allows farmers to apply for low-interest loans and refinance existing debt. It also lets farmers participate in a cost-sharing program for debris removal and clean-up expenses.
The Massachusetts legislature late Monday night approved a supplemental budget that contained the authorization for the farm relief fund. Passage came just a week after Senate President Karen Spilka announced plans to create the fund at a farm in Hatfield.
“We have a responsibility to support the communities that grow the food on our tables, drive the agricultural economy of our state, and this flexible funding will accomplish just that,” Spilka said.
Joining Spilka for that announcement were Sen. Michael Rodriguez of Westport, chair of the Senate Ways and Means Committee, and Sen. Marc Pacheco of Taunton, the dean of the State Senate. Sen. Jo Comerford of Northampton said they all recognized the urgent need for state government to act.
“We are 40 senators united to support farms and farmers,” Comerford said.
Farmer Bernie Smiarowski said he appreciated the “herculean effort” to create the state fund which he said will not saddle farmers with more debt.
“We are proud and resilient people,” he said of farmers. “We want to grow our crop, sell it, and hopefully earn enough money to make a decent living. We hate being in this position – at the mercy of a natural disaster losing all or a portion of our crop this year, unable to pay our bills.”
Smiarowski, who farms land in Hatfield, Deerfield, and Northfield said he’s lost about 200 acres of potatoes.
Jay Savage, of Savage Farm in Deerfield, said he’s lost about 150 acres of produce.
“We’re looking at quality problems now that are actually starting me to question if we have a marketable crop and that scares the hell out of me,” he said.
The Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources, which will administer the new fund, estimates that 110 farms and 2,700 acres have been impacted by the recent severe weather. Losses are put at $15 million but that is expected to grow.
Several farms have raised money with GoFundMe appeals.
The nonprofit organization Community Involved in Sustaining Agriculture (CISA) is accepting applications for no-interest loans from its emergency farm fund.
Last month, Gov. Maura Healey announced a coordinated philanthropic effort to help farmers with the creation of the permanent Massachusetts Farm Resiliency Fund.
