Following USDA's announcement of the Market Year Average (MYA) prices for southern long and medium/short grain rice on October 30, USA Rice released an updated Price Loss Coverage (PLC) payment calculator for the 2019 rice crop. This USA Rice-developed tool helps to project a farmer's potential rice PLC payment.
Users are able to input their data to calculate payments, including base acres, and payment yield. The MYA prices that will be used to calculate PLC assistance for long grain and southern medium/short grain are $12.00/cwt and $11.60/cwt, respectively. Commodity program payments will soon be on the way to those eligible farmers.
The MYA for Temperate Japonica rice will be finalized and published at the end of the California marketing year in January 2021; however, it is not forecast to trigger a PLC payment for producers this year.
USA Rice says they have consistently advocated for the reauthorization and improvement of the PLC program as the primary tool to help rice farmers manage their main risk, which is multi-yea price declines. While the program does not necessarily make farmers whole, it is a strong safety net that provides farmers with modest support when they need it most.
"The farm safety net is a critical part of America's farmers being able to stay in business while combating unpredictable market conditions," said Nicole Montna Van Vleck, California rice farmer and USA Rice Farmers chair. "The Price Loss Coverage program has been and continues to be a cornerstone to the economic livelihood of rice producers."
PLC Payment Calculator for 2019 Crop Released
