The U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue designated Calumet County, just east of Lake Winnebago, and six other counties as disaster areas due to crop losses.
Heavy rains in late spring and early summer cut Calumet County’s strawberry crops by more than 30 percent.
Tom Schneider, the USDA’s County Executive Director for Manitowoc and Calumet counties, said any farmer, regardless of crop, who suffered losses of at least 30 percent is eligible for low interest emergency loans.
Stay informed on the latest news
Sign up for WPR’s email newsletter.
“Corn, soybeans, major crops were planted late because of the rain,” Schneider said. Adding that many crops seem to have bounced back, “the corn and soybeans look pretty good but we know there are individual farmers out there who have suffered a loss.”
The emergency loans are meant to help farmers make ends meet until the next harvest. Schneider said the loans have a 3.75 percent interest rate and that there’s no limit on how many the government will fund, as long as applicants meet the requirements.
“The requirement is that a farmer has suffered at least a 30 percent loss on one crop, that can be any crop,” he said. “The loss had to be due to the excessive rainfall.”
Counties covered by the disaster loan program include: Brown; Calumet; Fond Du Lac; Manitowoc; Outagamie; Sheboygan; and Winnebago.
Wisconsin Public Radio, © Copyright 2024, Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System and Wisconsin Educational Communications Board.
