Financial aid sought for flood-stricken poultry farmers

While the USDA indemnity programs may help compensate North Carolina poultry farmers for the birds they lost in flooding caused by Hurricane Matthew in October, those programs will not cover property damages.  Bob Etheridge, North Carolina state director for the USDA Farm Service Agency, noted that some farmers may not have had insurance on buildings and equipment damaged or lost to flooding, which adds to their difficulties. There are also significant expenses involved in storm clean-up and decontamination procedures. Presently, the USDA does not have any programs available for such losses, but Etheridge said he hopes that will change soon. “We’re working on it. Hopefully we’ll find some way, because if we don’t some of these people are going to have a real tough time making it,” Etheridge said in a USDA Radio News interview. Officials are still trying to assess the losses the North Carolina poultry industry suffered, but Etheridge said on November 2 that he knows a minimum of 2 million birds drowned in the flooding. That number is up from the 1.9 million birds confirmed dead on October 19, but there has been speculation that as many as 5 million birds had been lost.