Agriculture and Forestry Commissioner Mike Strain, D.V.M., said Louisiana aquaculture producers with recorded losses associated with high feed inputs during the 2008 calendar year may qualify for financial aid under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.
Strain said the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry will receive $2.4 million. The LDAF and LSU AgCenter will host three meetings to explain the application process in Jonesville, Winnsboro and Crowley.
“It’s a good program that can help producers with their bottom line,” Strain said.
The application and guidelines are available on the LDAF Web site at www.ldaf.state.la.us. Click the link entitled 2008 Aquaculture Grant Program. Federal guidelines for the program require that feed costs for eligible aquaculture species must be 25 percent or more of the total production costs. Eligible species in Louisiana include catfish, turtles, baitfish, tilapia and crawfish.
Producers will be required to demonstrate that their feed costs are at least 25 percent of the 5-year average.
Producers will need to provide their W-9, 2008 feed tonnage report, certification letter from the feed mill certifying tons purchased in 2008 and the average feed price paid by the aquaculture producer in the 2008 calendar year.
Producers that are not individuals (like partnerships) will be required to establish a Dun and Bradstreet universal numbering system (DUNS) or update an existing DUNS number at www.dnb.com. Also, producers that are not individuals are also required to register with the Central Contractor Registration (CCR) database or update an existing registration with CCR at www.ccr.gov. The meeting schedules are as follows:
Jonesville
Monday, July 13, 2009 - 10:00 a.m.
Catahoula-LaSalle Bank Conference Room
301 Mound Street, Jonesville
Winnsboro
Monday, July 13, 2009 - 1:00 p.m.
LSU AgCenter
Scott Center
212A Macon Ridge Road, Winnsboro
Crowley
Thursday, July 16, 2009 - 6:00 p.m.
Acadia Parish Extension Office
157 Cherokee Drive, Crowley
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