Deputy Agriculture Secretary Richard Rominger today announced a new program to match farmers and ranchers without enough hay to feed their drought stressed livestock with those who have surplus hay. Hay Net' is a good example of farmers helping farmers, and a great tool for getting hay where it's needed as quickly and efficiently as possible. I encourage everyone to participate. Farmers and ranchers who need hay can register at the agency's local offices and receive a list of the closest producers with hay to spare, and vice versa.
Farmers can then contact each other and make appropriate arrangements.
Many farmers, especially those in the Northern Plains and the South, are suffering hardships as a result of the weather and weak Asian markets, strong world crop production, and a U.S. farm policy that cannot cope with a string of natural disasters. Emergency grazing of certain land in the Conservation Reserve Program has been allowed to help livestock in Texas, Oklahoma, and New Mexico. The Hay Net' will operate for six months.