Money For Lightning Strike
ELDON COLE
MT. VERNON, MO.
A local farmer had the misfortune of losing eleven head of cattle to a lightning strike in May. He didn’t have insurance to cover the loss. Like many farmers, he considered it just part of being in the business.
His wife called to see if I knew of a program that covers this type of catastrophe. I called the Farm Service Agency and they told me about the Livestock Indemnity Program. It was authorized in the 2014 Farm Bill. It is designed to provide benefits to livestock producers who have losses in excess of normal mortality. The cause of the deaths could be weather, eligible disease or eligible attacks by animals reintroduced into the wild by the federal government.
There are hoops to go through to receive compensation, but it’s worth a try, certainly on 11 cows. I believe the normal annual mortality mentioned was over 1.5 percent for adult cattle. You must have a third party verify the loss such as a veterinarian or maybe even an extension person. It can’t be a family member. Pictures will work. Check with your tax person to see if it’s a taxable payment.
In the eleven cow loss, the farmer will use the backhoe operator as his witness that they were in fact killed. The FSA folks said the payment can be received even if there was insurance on the loss. Check with your county FSA office if you have a significant death loss. ∆
ELDON COLE: Extension Livestock Specialist, University of Missouri