Sen. Hoeven Meets With Ag Leaders & Rural Businesses on Payments & Exports

Some of the topics he covered were disaster assistance and export opportunities.

FARGO, N.D.- Senator Hoeven says  it’s been a difficult year for farmers with low prices and severe weather damaging crops.

“We’re helping with the market facilitation payment which now for North Dakota has been over a billion dollars. And now, we’re working on the disaster assistance piece both for our sugar producers, and I think we’re getting closer to getting that done, hopefully in the next couple of weeks. But then the quality loss piece, which is for everybody, for all the different commodities, that’s taking more work,” says North Dakota Senator John Hoeven.

The senator also spoke about improvements made on the agriculture risk coverage and the price loss coverage.

“One of the big improvements we made in this five year farm bill is that over the course of the five years, If they pick ARC or they pick PLC and then they decide to change, in the next year, they can make that change,” Senator Hoeven says.

Hoeven also met with rural businesses to discuss how to work to expand export opportunities.

The senator highlighted the increased funding that he secured for the Rural America Intelligence Service for exporters better known as the RAISE program.

“I was able to look at maybe seven to eight countries and then they gave me in-depth market research on those countries and then from there I was able to use the commercial service and actually go in and set up meetings for me with multiple companies from any country,” says Jon Engelstad, Sales Manager, at Superior Grain Equipment.

He says this program saved him a lot of time and money.

“They’re able to give me that research so it saves me a lot of time, so I can focus on working with the people who have already been vetted out who are interested in our product,” Engelstad says.

Hoeven is also sponsoring the Promoting Rural Exports Act to establish a Rural Export Center at existing USCS office.