An Easier Way to Pay Your MPP Premium?
Paying bills on a monthly basis is often best for managing cash flow. And now, thanks to a new program from National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF), dairy farmers can have their Margin Protection Program (MPP) premiums deducted from their milk checks.
“What we heard from producers was, ‘Anything you can do to help us pay these premiums will make it easier for us to buy,’” says Jaime Castaneda, senior vice president at NMPF. “Like anyone else, if producers can pay something on a monthly basis, without having to pay much interest, it’s better than having to pay $10,000 all at once.”
This new feature does that. Producers enrolled in MPP can contract with their milk handler or cooperative to make monthly payments on their MPP premiums.
Interested? Here's what you need to do:
- Find out if your milk handler is participating. Cooperatives have information in hand about the program now and will be deciding to participate in the near future, according to Castaneda.
- If your handler is participating, you will sign up for the program through them.
- Next, you need to notify Farm Service Agency (FSA) that you are participating in the deduction program, and your milk handler will be making premium payments on your behalf.
The handler can make payments to FSA monthly, or pay one lump sum at the end of the year.
“As long as whoever is collecting the money for the producer pays in full by September,” Canstaneda explains. “The government doesn’t care if the money comes every month, or in one lump sum.”
Are you participating in MPP this year? Will you opt for this service or would you rather pay the full amount at one time in September? Let us know in the comments.
