BUILDING A TEAM TO CONDUCT FARM BILL EDUCATION PROGRAMS FOR OHIO FARMERS
Griffith, M.1; Brown, B.2; Zoller, C.3; Bruynis, C.4; Chanon, A.5; Custer, S.6; Douridas, A.7; Estadt, M.8; Gastier, M.9; Gelley, C.10; Hartschuh, J.11; Holden, A.12; Leeds, R.13; Lewandowski, R.14; Lima, D.15; Marrison, D.16; Meyer, G.17; Morris, J.18; Noggle, S.19; Nye, L.20; Richer, E.21; Shoemaker, D.22; Williams, H.231Extension Educator, Agriculture & Natural Resources, Ohio State University Extension, London, OH, 43140
2Manager, Farm Management Program, OSU Department of Agricultural, Environmental and Development Economics, Columbus, OH, 43210
3Associate Professor & Extension Educator, ANR, OSU Extension, Tuscarawas County, New Philadelphia, OH, 44663
4Associate Professor & Extension Educator, ANR, OSU Extension, Ross County, Chillicothe, OH, 45601
5Extension Educator, ANR, OSU Extension, Loraine County, Elyria, OH, 44035
6Extension Educator, ANR, OSU Extension, Darke County, Greenville, OH, 45331
7Extension Educator, ANR, OSU Extension, Champaign County, Urbana, OH, 43078
8Extension Educator, ANR, OSU Extension, Pickaway County, Circleville, OH, 43113
9Extension Educator, ANR, OSU Extension, Huron County, Norwalk, OH, 44857
10Extension Educator, ANR, OSU Extension, Noble County, Caldwell, OH, 43724
11Extension Educator, ANR, OSU Extension, Crawford County, Bucyrus, OH, 44820
12Extension Educator, ANR, OSU Extension, Ashtabula County, Jefferson, OH, 44047
13Extension Educator, ANR, OSU Extension, Delaware County, Delaware, OH, 43015
14Extension Educator, ANR, OSU Extension, Wayne County, Wooster, OH, 44691
15Extension Educator, ANR, OSU Extension, Belmont County, Saint Clairsville, OH, 43950
16Associate Professor & Extension Educator, ANR, OSU Extension, Coshocton County, Coshocton, OH, 43812
17Extension Educator, ANR, OSU Extension, Warren County, Lebanon, OH, 45036
18Extension Educator, ANR/CD, OSU Extension, Brown County, Georgetwon, OH, 45121
19Extension Educator, ANR, OSU Extension, Paulding County, Paulding, OH, 45879
20Extension Educator, ANR, OSU Extension, Clinton County, Wilmington, OH, 45177
21Assistant Professor & Extension Educator, ANR, OSU Extension, Fulton County, Wauseon, OH, 43567
22Field Specialist, Dairy Production Economics, OSU Extension, Canfield, OH, 44406
23Extension Educator, ANR, OSU Extension, Seneca County, Tiffin, OH, 44883
Abstract:
The Agricultural Adjustment Act of 2018, also known as the 2018 Farm Bill, provided farmers the opportunity to choose from various federal risk management programs. Dairy producers could enroll in different coverage levels under the Dairy Margin (DMC) program and crop producers could select between the Price Loss Coverage (PLC) or two versions of the Agricultural Revenue Coverage (ARC) program. While similar to the 2014 Farm Bill in structure, producer elections under the 2018 Farm Bill required more analysis, time and consideration due to factors such as: relative historical revenue benchmarks, anticipated US production in 2019 and 2020, future expected prices, and continued demand uncertainty. To help farmers understand program options, Ohio State University Extension secured grant funding from the Extension Risk Management Education Center to develop curriculum, resources, and tools creating easier analysis of 2018 Farm Bill programs while providing training opportunities for county-based Extension Educators. These trained Educators then implemented Farm Bill education to Ohio dairy and crop producers. More than 7,000 farmers attended 150 DMC, ARC, and PLC trainings provided by Ohio State University Extension in partnership with the Ohio Farm Service Agency from June 2019 to March 2020. Core components of trainings included: understanding performance of 2014 Farm Bill programs, differentiating when PLC and ARC triggered payments, analyzing DMC premiums vs expected payouts, considerations for both the individual option of ARC and the Supplemental Coverage Option, and key decision deadlines.
This poster will describe how the OSU Farm Bill team formed, examples of curriculum and tools developed for both farm-level analysis and education purposes, results of programming, and lessons learned along the way for consideration in future program development. Starting in 2021, 2018 Farm Bill program elections will be made annually, increasing the importance of delivering annual support to producers, agribusinesses and industry partners. When asked “How can OSU Extension serve you better in future Farm Bill programs” with an interest at looking toward future program delivery, the majority of responses expressed continued programing similar to those provided in 2019-2020 implying that OSU Extension was successful in providing risk management training to Ohio producers.