The May/June 2021 issue of the Southeastern Peanut Farmer is now available online.
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This issue features:
Recently, some farmers may have received an email or letter in the mail regarding an antitrust litigation notice. Do not disregard the notice! If you received the notice then check the peanut sales information listed on the letter and file your claim by July 13, 2021.
If you do not submit a valid Claim Form by the deadline, you will not receive a payment from the Settlement Fund, but you will be bound by the Court’s judgment in these actions.
The notice was sent to farmers or entities who sold raw, harvested runner peanuts in the U.S. to Birdsong Peanuts, Golden Peanut or Olam Peanut Shelling Company from Jan. 1, 2014 through Dec. 31, 2019. The full notice regarding the proposed settlement is available at www.PeanutFarmersAntitrustLitigation.com.
Continue to check the website to be kept informed about any future developments. If you believe you are a member of the Class, you are urged to obtain a copy of the Notice, which explains your rights regarding the settlements and related matter. The Notice is available at www.PeanutFarmersAntitrustLitigation.com.
If you have any questions concerning this litigation, you may contact the Settlement Administrator at (844) 754-7469 and Info@PeanutFarmersAntitrustLitigation.com.
Henry County parents, Caleb and Freda Bristow were heartbroken, yet determined after finding out their youngest son Sam, suffered from a peanut allergy. For some parents this information may seem frustrating and inconvenient but for the Bristow family it was very problematic.
Caleb Bristow grew up on a peanut farm, manages a peanut buying point and also sells peanut trailers. Peanuts are an essential part of his everyday life. “I even had people joke- with me growing up in the peanut industry- and say oh wouldn’t it be funny if your kid has a peanut allergy,” said Caleb.
About a year ago, when Sam was around six months old, Caleb and Freda started introducing Sam to peanut products. He had a few minor reactions to it, but Caleb wasn’t convinced his child could be allergic to peanuts. Having already been diagnosed with some food allergies, and after a trip to a pediatric allergist, the Bristow’s worst nightmare was confirmed. Sam was diagnosed with a peanut allergy at around nine months old. “I literally work for peanuts and now I have a kid who is allergic to peanuts,” says Caleb.
Fortunately for the Bristow family, they knew that just living with the allergy wasn’t the only option like their allergist had suggested. Caleb, having also been the former executive director of the Alabama Peanut Producers Association, had previously had the opportunity to meet with a doctor in Birmingham who was working on a groundbreaking treatment that essentially eliminates the peanut allergy from a person’s body.
Dr. Joseph LaRussa, M.D. is a Board-Certified Allergy and Immunology Specialist in Birmingham. With 22 years of pediatric allergy experience and having a child with peanut and tree nut allergies, Dr. LaRussa knows what it is like to be a parent of a food allergy child. He has discovered that children with a peanut allergy can actually be desensitized to the allergy through oral immunotherapy.
In January of 2015 a group of researchers from both London and the U.S. released a groundbreaking study which is now known as the Learning Early about Peanut Allergy (LEAP) study. The results of the study found that the introduction of peanuts into an infant’s diet, prior to 11-months old, reduced the prevalence of peanut allergy by approximately 70-80 percent (peanutallergyfacts.org). This study motivated Dr. LaRussa to conduct further research on how to help patients with peanut allergy.
During the Bristow’s first appointment the doctor said something that Freda says she’ll never forget. Dr. LaRussa said “we want to dictate food allergies, not food allergies dictate the way we live.” “I almost cried… that was just like a sigh of relief. We can help him (Sam) with this, so he doesn’t have to live in fear,” says mother, Freda.
Sam is far enough along in his treatments that the Bristow family no longer has to worry about having peanut products in the house. “After 16 weeks we have finally worked our way up to half a teaspoon of peanut butter,” says Caleb. By springtime, Sam should be able to enjoy a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.
While this immunotherapy is not FDA approved, it has proven to be a safe and viable option for infants and children trying to overcome peanut allergies. For more information on how to safely introduce peanuts to your infant to help prevent peanut allergy, visit https://preventpeanutallergies.org/.
Alabama peanut farmers care deeply about their product and the consumers who are affected by it. Since 2001, through the National Peanut Board, peanut farmers across the nation have earmarked more than $32 million of their own dollars into research and education about food and peanut allergies.
The April 2021 issue of the Southeastern Peanut Farmer is now available online.
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This issue features:
Senator Warnock and Congressman Bishop visited agricultural producers throughout Georgia’s 2nd Congressional District. During this tour, they met with local farmers and various industry leaders to discuss the importance of Georgia’s agricultural footprint, as well as the importance of the federal government in supporting Georgia’s agriculture industry.
Congressman Bishop serves as the chairman of the U.S. House Agriculture Appropriations subcommittee and he serves on the House Agriculture Committee. Senator Warnock joined the U.S. Senate Ag Committee and is chairman of the Senate Ag subcommittee on Commodities, Risk Management and Trade.
During Senator Warnock’s first congressional tour since being elected, he heard the individual needs of the different commodity groups at each stop. The stops included:
During the stop at OLAM Peanut Shelling Facility, Senator Warnock had a crash course about the economic impact of the peanut industry in Georgia, Georgia’s peanut exports, and the nutritional benefits that peanuts have. These remarks came from:
“As a member of U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, & Forestry, I am committed to supporting Georgia’s agricultural economy—and ensuring those Georgia farmers and producers that put food on the table have a seat at the table. Our state and nation are dependent on you and your important work.” – Senator Reverend Raphael Warnock.
The March 2021 issue of the Southeastern Peanut Farmer is now available online.
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This issue features:
WASHINGTON, March 5, 2021 – The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is extending the deadline from March 5 to April 9 for agricultural producers to apply for the Quality Loss Adjustment (QLA) Program because of recent winter storms and some clarifications to program rules. This program assists producers who suffered crop quality losses due to qualifying 2018 and 2019 natural disasters.
“Because of recent winter storms and some program updates, we want to provide five additional weeks for producers to apply for the program,” said Zach Ducheneaux, Administrator of the Farm Service Agency (FSA). “I want to make sure eligible producers have the opportunity to apply and to work with our team members to help with any questions. We recently clarified policy to ensure producers who sold grain to the feed market due to quality issues are adequately compensated.”
About the Program
The QLA program assists producers whose eligible crops suffered quality losses due to qualifying drought, excessive moisture, flooding, hurricanes, snowstorms, tornadoes, typhoons, volcanic activity, or wildfires.
Eligible crops include those for which federal crop insurance or Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP) coverage is available, except for grazed crops and value loss crops, such as honey, maple sap, aquaculture, floriculture, mushrooms, ginseng root, ornamental nursery, Christmas trees, and turfgrass sod. Additionally, crops that were sold or fed to livestock or that are in storage may be eligible.
Assistance is available in counties that received a Presidential Emergency Disaster Declaration or Secretarial Disaster Designation, or for drought, a county rated by the U.S. Drought monitor as having a D3 (extreme drought) or higher. Producers in counties that did not receive a qualifying declaration or designation may still apply but must also provide supporting documentation.
FSA will issue payments once the application period ends. If the total amount of calculated QLA payments exceeds available program funding, payments will be prorated.
More Information
FSA began accepting applications on January 6 and has received more than 8,100 applications so far.
To apply, contact your local USDA Service Center. Additional information is also available at farmers.gov/quality-loss. Producers can also obtain one-on-one support with applications by calling 877-508-8364.
While USDA offices are currently closed to visitors because of the pandemic, Service Center staff continue to work with agricultural producers via phone, email, and other digital tools. To conduct business, please contact your local USDA Service Center. Additionally, more information related to USDA’s response and relief for producers can be found at farmers.gov/coronavirus.
Press release from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
The January/February 2021 issue of the Southeastern Peanut Farmer is now available online.
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The October/November 2020 issue of the Southeastern Peanut Farmer is now available online.
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Recent Rule on Payment Limitations and Payment Eligibility Does Not Impact 2020 or 2021 Payments
WASHINGTON, Sept. 25, 2020 – USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) reminds farm owners of the September 30 deadline to update Price Loss Coverage (PLC) program yields for covered commodities on the farm. This is a one-time opportunity for producers to update yields, which are used to calculate 2020 through 2023 payments.
“Don’t miss this one-time opportunity to update yields for the Price Loss Coverage program,” said FSA Administrator Richard Fordyce. “Please contact your FSA county office to schedule an appointment.”
Updating yields requires the signature of one owner on a farm and not all owners. If a yield update is not made, no action is required to maintain the existing base crop yield on file with FSA.
For program payments, updated yields will apply beginning with the 2020 crop year which, should payments trigger, will be paid in October 2021. Additionally, recently published updates to the payment limitation and eligibility provisions for Farm Bill programs do not impact payments from ARC and PLC for the 2019 crop year or the 2020 crop year.
The updated yield will be equal to 90% of the average yield per planted acre in crop years 2013-2017. That excludes any year where the applicable covered commodity was not planted and is subject to the ratio obtained by dividing the 2008-2012 average national yield by the 2013-2017 average national yield for the covered commodity.
FSA published a final rule in August 2020 that made updates to payments limitations and payment eligibility for programs, many of which were directed by the 2018 Farm Bill. For ARC and PLC, these updates will not take effect until 2021 crop payments that will be made in October 2022.
For more information, reference resources, and decision tools, visit farmers.gov/arc-plc or contact your FSA county office, which can be located at farmers.gov/service-center-locator.
Press release from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
