- The Farm Service Agency (FSA), which provides disaster aid and crop insurance data, is closed as the government shutdown continues.
- Local cotton farmers say they can’t report drought losses or apply for assistance until the office reopens.
- Watch the video to see what the UGA Extension offices are saying about the situation.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
Decisions made hundreds of miles away in D.C. are being felt right here in Thomasville not in government offices, but in the cotton fields.
I spoke with a seventh-generation cotton farmer to find out how this pause in federal services is affecting their work and what it could mean if another natural disaster, like the recent drought in Thomas County, hits again.
"This year, we definitely had to irrigate more, and that comes with cost. And then our dry land, you know, crops pay for it, too, because, we're not getting the rain, but there's nothing really we can do about it other than pray for rain and run irrigation," said Dillon Price, a cotton farmer.
Price tells me his family runs over 3,500 acres of cotton, and the recent drought has already hurt a lot of their yield.
After harvest, they turn to crop insurance and then to the FSA, the Farm Service Agency, for help navigating losses and managing disaster relief. That support is critical for farms like theirs to stay afloat.
"It'd probably run most of the farmers out of business if we didn't have FSA. You know, it keeps everything in records for our county," said Price.
After spending the afternoon with the Price family, I drove to the FSA office only to find it closed because of the government shutdown.
I then reached out to the University of Georgia Extension to see how they're helping local farmers in the meantime.
This is what they told me:
"UGA Extension offices remain open and continue providing all services."
"To date, effects of the shutdown to UGA Extension are limited to federal government websites not being updated during the shutdown. That data is used by UGA Extension agents to provide real-time decision support to growers."
The FSA plays a critical role for farmers, providing disaster assistance.
With the office closed, the Price family has to wait to report losses from the drought, and it puts them at risk if something more serious, like a hurricane, hits.
"If a hurricane comes in and they're closed, we're going to be wanting somebody to open up. They've got to have all the numbers. You can't run to them and say, 'Hey, I've got this issue. I need some help.' They've got to see how many people and who all needs help," said Justin Price, a cotton farmer.
Farmers who need help after the drought can call UGA Extension in Thomas County at this number 229-225-4130. They'll come out and see what can be done.
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