The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) on July 30 announced that seed cotton producers may apply to participate in the Agriculture Risk Coverage (ARC) and Price Loss Coverage (PLC) programs for the 2018 crop year. The signup period ends on Dec. 7.

Farm owners with generic base acres and recent planting history of covered commodities have a one-time opportunity to allocate all of the generic base acres on their farm.

“ARC and PLC are a vital part of the safety net that ensures American agriculture remains competitive and producers are able to manage risk,” said USDA Farm Service Agency Administrator Richard Fordyce. “USDA encourages any cotton producer to look into these important safety net programs.”

Farms with generic base acres that were planted or approved as a prevented planted commodity during the 2009-16 crop years are eligible to allocate generic base acres. This includes upland cotton.

FSA posted a notice on July 27 explaining the program:

www.fsa.usda.gov/Internet/FSA_Notice/arcplc54.pdf