Farmers in 21 Louisiana parishes are eligible for drought disaster aid, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said Wednesday.
The USDA designated Bienville, Caldwell, Claiborne, Jackson, Lincoln, Morehouse, Ouachita, Richland, Union and Webster parishes as primary disaster areas.
The other 11 parishes are eligible because they’re adjacent to a parish or county that was declared a primary disaster area.
Bossier, Catahoula, East Carroll, Franklin, LaSalle, Madison, Natchitoches, Red River, West Carroll, and Winn parishes are next to a Louisiana parish, and Caddo Parish is next to a Texas county declared a disaster area.
Farmers in those parishes have eight months to apply for low-interest emergency loans from the Farm Service Agency.
The agency also has other programs to help farmers and ranchers. It said those include the Livestock Forage Disaster Program, the Livestock Indemnity Program, the Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honeybees, and Farm-Raised Fish Program, and the Tree Assistance Program.