MONTGOMERY, Ala. – The Alabama Department of Agriculture and Industries’ (ADAI) Commissioner Rick Pate commends President Donald Trump and U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins, alongside other federal and state leadership, for their recent announcement that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) will provide $12 billion in one time bridge payments to American farmers. The allocated funds are in response to temporary trade market disruptions and increased production costs. Eligible farmers should ensure their 2025 acreage reporting is factual and accurate by 4:00 p.m. CT on December 19, 2025, by contacting their local Farm Service Agency (FSA) office.

“USDA’s bridge payments provide critical relief for Alabama farmers, especially during unprecedented financial times,” said Commissioner Pate. “This support will help our growers stabilize their operations and ensure a stronger and more sustainable future for Alabama agriculture.”

Of the $12 billion provided, up to $11 billion will be used for the Farmer Bridge Assistance (FBA) Program, which provides broad relief to United States row crop farmers who produce Barley, Chickpeas, Corn, Cotton, Lentils, Oats, Peanuts, Peas, Rice, Sorghum, Soybeans, Wheat, Canola, Crambe, Flax, Mustard, Rapeseed, Safflower, Sesame and Sunflower. FBA will help address market disruptions, elevated input costs, persistent inflation and market losses from foreign competitors engaging in unfair trade practices that impede exports.

The FBA Program is using a uniform formula to cover a portion of modeled losses during the 2025 crop year. This national loss average is based on FSA reported planted acres.

Farmers who qualify for the FBA Program can expect payments to be released by February 28, 2026. Commodity-specific payment rates will be released by the end of the month.

The remaining $1 billion of the $12 billion in bridge payments will be reserved for commodities not covered in the FBA Program such as specialty crops. Details including timelines for those payments are still under development and will require additional understanding of market impacts and economic needs.

For more information, Alabama producers can contact their FSA office at www.fsa.usda.gov/state-offices/alabama