New USDA Program Helping Loans Get to Producers

The USDA has announced they will help smaller farmers and urban producers get loans of up to $100,000 through a new EZ Guarantee Loans program.

FSA Farm Loan Specialist Tanya Dostal said farmers will be able to work through approved banks who can now have more protection.

“The idea behind the EZ Guarantee is that for smaller producers, lower dollar amounts the bank would have a streamlined and simplified process to allow them to do some loans.”

Dostal said the USDA will guarantee the bank loan up to 90 percent as many banks are reluctant to make these riskier, smaller loans.

The goal, get money in the hands of smaller producers and help the banks put money back into the ag economy according to Dostal.

“What that allows the bank to do is to make the loan to the producer if it’s a high-risk loan, it’s a beginning farmer, it’s a producer that suffered from the downturn in commodity prices that doesn’t meet their current lending standards.”

To take advantage of the new EZ Guarantee Loan program, talk to a specialist at one of the USDA-approved banks.

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