ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Minn. — Northeast Minnesota experienced one of the worst droughts in nearly 30 years this past summer. Some even suggest it was worse than in the 1950s. I don’t have any data to support that, but based on the U.S. drought monitor, Northeast Minnesota reached the D3 status of extreme drought in St Louis County on July 20 through the second week of September https://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/.
Surrounding counties didn’t reach the D3 status until a bit later, but in all cases, forage production was down 60-75% of normal standards. Some of these counties include Lake, Cook, Koochiching, Itasca and Carlton.
With this in mind, our local farmers and ranchers were dramatically impacted. The USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA) has assistance to help financially with offsetting the costs of transporting forage in (Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honey Bees, and Farm-raised Fish (ELAP) (usda.gov)) as well as assisting forage loss (Livestock Forage Program (LFP) (usda.gov)). Each of these programs are designed to help farmers cover some of the extra expenses of maintaining their livestock herds.
The forage transportation program (ELAP) is for forage purchased from 7/20/21 until 12/30/21 and must be applied for by Jan. 31, 2022. The forage loss program (LFP) requires sign-up asap and needs to be completed by Jan. 31, 2022.
If you are a farmer or rancher impacted by the drought, you will need to contact the FSA office that serves you in your respective county. For more information about which FSA office you should contact, based on your county or for more information please check out our website: Farm Service Agency Programs that help with drought | UMN Extension.
— Troy Salzer, Extension Educator, University of Minnesota Extension, St. Louis County