USDA Extends Application Deadline for Organic Dairy Marketing Assistance Until December 13
$58 Million Available, Program Improvements Include Increased Payment Rate and Production Cap

[November 15, 2024]  WASHINGTON, – The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is extending the application deadline for the Organic Dairy Marketing Assistance Program (ODMAP) 2024 to Dec.13, 2024. This extension gives organic dairy producers two additional weeks to apply for the program. Eligible producers include certified organic dairy operations that produce milk from cows, goats and sheep.

ODMAP 2024 helps mitigate market volatility, higher input and transportation costs, and unstable feed supply and prices that have created unique hardships in the organic dairy industry. Specifically, through ODMAP 2024, USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) is assisting organic dairy operations with projected marketing costs in 2024 calculated using their marketing costs in 2023.

“Extending the deadline for the Organic Dairy Marketing Assistance Program 2024 gives hardworking organic dairy producers additional time to request the support they need,” said FSA Administrator Zach Ducheneaux, “We will continue doing everything we can to keep the market for organic dairies sustainable as they weather challenges outside of their control.”

ODMAP 2024 Program Improvements

Dairy producers who participate in ODMAP 2024 will benefit from improvements to provisions outlined in the program. Specifically, ODMAP 2024 provides a payment rate increase to $1.68 per hundredweight compared to the previous $1.10 per cwt. Additionally, the production cap has increased to nine million pounds compared to the previous five million pounds.

How ODMAP 2024 Works

FSA is providing financial assistance for a producer’s projected marketing costs in 2024 based on their 2023 costs. ODMAP 2024 provides a one-time cost-share payment based on marketing costs on pounds of organic milk marketed in the 2023 calendar year or estimated 2024 marketing costs for organic dairy operations that have increased milk production.

ODMAP 2024 provides financial assistance that immediately supports certified organic dairy operations during 2024 keeping organic dairy operations sustainable until markets return to more normal conditions.

How to Apply

FSA is now accepting applications through Dec. 13. To apply, producers should contact FSA at their local USDA Service Center. To complete the ODMAP 2024 application, producers must certify pounds of 2023 milk production, show documentation of their organic certification and submit a completed application form.

Organic dairy operations are required to provide their USDA certification of organic status confirming operation as an organic dairy in 2024 and 2023 along with the certification of 2023 milk production or estimated 2024 milk production in hundredweight.

ODMAP 2024 complements other assistance available to dairy producers, including Dairy Margin Coverage (DMC), with more than $36 million in benefits paid for the 2024 program year to date. Learn more on the FSA Dairy Programs webpage.

More Information

To learn more about USDA programs, producers can contact their local USDA Service Center. Producers can also prepare maps for acreage reporting as well as manage farm loans and other programs by logging into their farmers.gov account. Producers without an account can sign up today.

FSA helps America’s farmers, ranchers and forest landowners invest in, improve, protect and expand their agricultural operations through the delivery of agricultural programs for all Americans. FSA implements agricultural policy, administers credit and loan programs, and manages conservation, commodity, disaster recovery and marketing programs through a national network of state and county offices and locally elected county committees. For more information, visit fsa.usda.gov.

USDA touches the lives of all Americans each day in so many positive ways. In the Biden-Harris administration, USDA is transforming America’s food system with a greater focus on more resilient local and regional food production, fairer markets for all producers, ensuring access to safe, healthy and nutritious food in all communities, building new markets and streams of income for farmers and producers using climate smart food and forestry practices, making historic investments in infrastructure and clean energy capabilities in rural America, and committing to equity across the Department by removing systemic barriers and building a workforce more representative of America. To learn more, visit usda.gov.