|
USDA Announces 2003 Loan Rates
The 2003 county loan rates for wheat have been updated and remain differentiated by each of the five major classes of wheat (durum, hard red spring, hard red winter, soft red winter, and soft white),
continuing the precedent established with the 2002 rates, according to USDA.
Varying supplies and changing demand patterns of these different wheat classes produce widely variable market prices.
By moving last year to a class-based system for wheat, the Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) now provides marketing assistance loans and LDPs that reflect actual market prices for each class, thus achieving a more equitable distribution of commodity program benefits among producers.
For 2002, county loan and loan repayment rates for durum were established with no differentiation in value for the various subclasses of durum recognized by the market. To further improve the market
orientation of the wheat loan program, loan rate premiums will be available for durum wheat that grades as amber durum or hard amber durum.
Beginning with the harvest of the 2003 crop, the base level of the alternative loan repayment rate (or “posted county price” (PCP) as it is typically known) will be announced daily for durum, with
corresponding premiums for durum which grades as either amber durum or hard amber durum. The 2003 crop premiums per bushel from the base level of the county loan rate for durum currently are: Amber durum
$0.20; Hard amber durum, $0.30.
This differentiation of the 2003 crop of durum into three subclasses for county loan and loan repayment rates reflects USDA discussions with wheat producers and grain industry representatives.
USDA also updated county loan rates for barley and oats to reflect recent market price relationships among counties, and adjusted oilseed loan rates. More information can be found at local FSA
offices, and online at www.fsa.usda.gov.
2003 National Average Loan Rates
|
Commodity
|
Loan Rates per Unit
|
|
Wheat
|
$2.80 per bushel
|
|
Corn
|
$1.98 per bushel
|
|
Grain Sorghum
|
$1.98 per bushel
|
|
Barley
|
$1.88 per bushel
|
|
Oats
|
$1.35 per bushel
|
|
Soybeans
|
$5.00 per bushel
|
|
Oilseeds (see below)
|
$0.0960 per pound
|
|
Dry Peas
|
$6.33 per hundredweight
|
|
Lentils
|
$11.94 per hundredweight
|
|
Small Chickpeas
|
$7.56 per hundredweight
|
2003 Oilseed National Average Loan Rates
|
Oilseed Type
|
Loan Rates per pound
|
|
Sunflower (oil and non-oil types)
|
$0.0960
|
|
Flaxseed
|
$0.0720
|
|
Canola
|
$0.0978
|
|
Rapeseed
|
$0.0976
|
|
Safflower Seed
|
$0.1292
|
|
Mustard Seed
|
$0.1019
|
|
