COVID-19 Update: Nursery/Greenhouse/Flower Survey on CFAP Funding

Are you a nursery/greenhouse/cut flower grower who has been impacted by COVID-19 market disruptions? Completing this survey will help us provide data to USDA, which may help impacted farms qualify for CFAP farm disaster funding.

If you are a nursery/greenhouse grower or cut flower grower, you may be aware that those farms were left out of USDA’s Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP) disaster payment program for farmers. According to USDA, this omission was due to a lack of data about those industries and their losses. USDA is seeking information to determine if these industries were affected by COVID-19 market impacts and are eligible for CFAP.

Cornell Cooperative Extension is collecting information from cut flower farms, nurseries and greenhouses about their current and expected losses from COVID-19. An analysis of this data will be provided to USDA in support of these industries. Sales data and markets data from 2019 is also being collected in the survey to help USDA set appropriate prices for losses.

Take the Survey Now

All responses are anonymous and no individual data will be shared. You can contact Elizabeth Higgins at emh56@cornell.edu if you would like more information.

Please complete this survey as soon as possible, as the period for public comment ends on June 22. The deadline for responses to this survey is June 17.

If you suffered significant losses, you can also communicate directly to the USDA. Go to regulations.gov, search for Docket ID FSA-2020-0004, and follow the instructions for submitting comments. You can also send your comments by mail to: Director, SND, FSA, US Department of Agriculture, 1400 Independence Avenue SW, Stop 0522, Washington, DC 20250-0522.

While this survey is specific to the nursery, greenhouse, and cut flower producers, other commodity producers (ex: aquaculture, niche specialty crops) currently not covered under CFAP are highly encouraged to submit comments to USDA for inclusion under CFAP.

There is a factsheet on considering other crops for CFAP that you can read so that you have a better idea of what data USDA is looking for.

Kacey Deamer

Kacey is the Communications Manager for the Cornell Small Farms Program. In this role, she manages all storytelling and outreach across the program’s website, social media, e-newsletter, magazine and more. Kacey has worked in communications and journalism for more than a decade, with a primary focus on science and sustainability.
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