Farm Law 'Calculator' Issued

June 21, 2002

The National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) has issued a farm law "guide and calculator" for growers to use to take the guesswork out of figuring direct payments, countercyclical payments, marketing loan assistance and total program benefits for producers of corn, barley, cotton, oats, rice, sorghum, soybeans and wheat.

By using NCGA's calculator, developed in cooperation with the Center for Agriculture & Rural Development, producers can input their county loan rates to get data on their payments.

"The calculator is a great tool for growers," said NCGA Public Policy Action Team Chairman Ron Litterer. "It gives them the opportunity to sit down and look at their operation. Due to the complexities of the farm bill, growers need to be able to enter their own data and get the information that applies directly to them."

Litterer noted the NCGA is compiling a pocket-sized guide to the farm law that will include the calculator on a computer disk as a convenient tool for association members. That guide and calculator will be mailed to all 32,000 NCGA members later this month.