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CCC LOAN EXTENSIONS

There are a number of farm operators with CCC corn and soybean loans expiring at the end of September and October. On September 20, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Mike Johanns announced that producers with CCC grain loans that mature at the end of September or October will have an additional 60 days to purchase the grain back at the “Posted County Price” (PCP). This announcement was made to ease short-term grain movement problems associated with damage from Hurricane Katrina near New Orleans, and to encourage producers to buy back the CCC grain that is under loan , rather than forfeiting the grain to CCC and creating more shot-term grain storage issues during harvest season. The 60-day extension on maturing CCC grain loans is available on a state-by-state basis. Producers should check with their County Farm Service Agency (FSA) Office for further details on the 60 day CCC loan extensions, or check the FSA web site at : www.fsa.usda.gov.

Editors note: Kent Thiesse is a former University of Minnesota Extension educator and now is Vice President of MinnStar Bank, Lake Crystal, MN. You can contact him at 507-726-2137 or via e-mail at kent.thiesse@minnstarbank.com.