[Archived] Coronavirus Food Assistance Program 2 for Dairy Producers

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced on March 24 the U.S. Department of Agriculture will begin providing additional financial assistance to farmers, ranchers, and producers impacted by COVID-19 market disruptions. Resources for these payments were approved by Congress in fiscal years 2020 and 2021.

The original application period for CFAP 2 was September 21 through December 11, 2020. USDA re-opened CFAP 2 signup for all eligible producers beginning April 5, 2021. All new or modified CFAP 2 applications are due by October 12, 2021. Learn more at farmers.gov/cfap.

Eligible Dairy Commodities

Cow milk and goat milk are both eligible for CFAP 2.

CFAP 2 payments are available for eligible producers of dairy commodities categorized as either price trigger or sales commodities. Specifically:

• Price trigger commodities suffered a five percent-or-greater national price decline in a comparison of the average prices for the week of January 13-17, 2020, and July 27-31, 2020. Cow milk is eligible for CFAP 2 as a price trigger commodity.
• Sales commodities have payment calculations that use a sales-based approach, where producers of eligible commodities are paid based on five payment gradations associated with their 2018 or 2019 sales. Goat milk is eligible for CFAP 2 as a sales commodity.

CFAP 2 Payments for Cow Milk

Dairy operations applying for CFAP 2 must be in the business of producing and commercially marketing milk at the time of application. Dairy operations that dissolve after enrollment in CFAP 2 are eligible for a prorated payment for the number of days the dairy operation commercially markets milk from September 1, 2020, through December 31, 2020. Dairy operations that dissolve prior to CFAP 2 enrollment are ineligible for CFAP 2 payments.

Payments for cow milk will be equal to the sum of the following:

1. The producer’s total actual milk production from April 1, 2020, to August 31, 2020, multiplied by the payment $1.20 per hundredweight; and
2. The producer’s estimated milk production from September 1, 2020, to December 31, 2020, based on the daily average production from April 1, 2020, through August 31, 2020, multiplied by 122, multiplied by a payment rate of $1.20 per hundredweight.

CFAP 2 Payments for Goat Milk

Goat milk is categorized as a sales-based commodity. On August 24, 2021, USDA announced an amendment to the CFAP 2 payment calculation for sales-based commodities to allow producers to substitute 2018 sales for 2019 sales. Previously only 2019 was used to approximate the amount goat milk producers would have expected to market in 2020. Giving producers the option to substitute 2018 sales for 2019 sales provides additional flexibility to producers who had reduced sales in 2019.

Payments for goat milk will be based on the producer’s 2018 or 2019 sales of eligible commodities in a declining block format using the following payment factors, and will be equal to: 

1. The amount of the producer’s eligible sales in calendar year 2018 or 2019, multiplied by
2. The payment rate for that range.

Payments for goat milk producers who began farming in 2020 and had no sales in 2018 or 2019 will be based on the producer’s actual 2020 sales as of producer’s application date.

Eligible sales only include sales of raw commodities grown by the producer. The portion of sales derived from adding value to the commodity, such as processing and packaging, and from sales of products purchased for resale, is not included in the payment calculation.

Example: A producer’s 2018 or 2019 sales of eligible commodities totaled $75,000. The payment is calculated as ($49,999 times 10.6%) plus ($25,001 times 9.9%) equals a total payment of $7,775.

Visit farmers.gov/cfap/apply to learn more about submitting a new CFAP 2 application for dairy.

Additional CFAP Information

Visit farmers.gov/cfap for more information on the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program, including eligible commodities, producer eligibility, payment limitations and structure, and the latest program resources.