The Georgia Farm Bureau held a teleconference to discuss the impact of COVID-19 on the agriculture industry and what steps are being taken to protect it. Members in the conference address the major disruption of food supply and distribution channels. This can be seen across the nation with food supplies going to waste.

One member addressed that normally when your diversified farmer you can find some sort of livestock or crop to prevail but now there is nothing. Several Georgia crops are in the process of being planted but farmers don’t know what to plant during this uncertain economy due to COVID-19. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue said, “I can’t remember this affecting every sector like this, even since the ’80s.”

Recently the CARES ACT was enforced in Georgia to financially help small businesses. The Paycheck Protection Program(PPP) is a subsect of the CARES Act that provides loans for essential parts of businesses such as payroll, interest payment on mortgages, rent payments, leases and utility services.

The meeting addressed that this program is provided to the agriculture industry and can be used by small farms.

Already 4000,000 loans have been processed within this week with the PPP program says, Perdue. Perdue says they are working on a program now for COVID-19 related funds and 14 billion is being replenished in the Commodity Credit Corporations. This replenishment will come around July but for the time being 6 billion dollars within the Commodity Credit Corporations funds are being used now. They are looking at direct payment to all sectors including, crops, cattle, and other livestock.

A possible phase 4 package for COVID-19 is in the talks at the congress and Perdue says this would include the agriculture industry.

WGXA