Farm Service Agency
Public Affairs Staff
1400 Independence Ave SW
Stop 0506, Room 3624-South
Washington, D.C. 20250-0506
Release No. 1556.05

 
Stevin Westcott (202) 720-4178

 
USDA ANNOUNCES 2005-CROP SUGAR LOAN RATES

 
WASHINGTON, Aug. 29, 2005 - The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) today announced loan rates for 2005-crop sugar as required by the 2002 Farm Bill. The 2005-crop national average loan rate is 18 cents per pound for raw cane sugar and 22.90 cents per pound for refined beet sugar, unchanged from last year. These national loan rates are adjusted by region to reflect freight differentials.

 
CCC will continue to offer nonrecourse marketing assistance loans to sugar beet and sugarcane processors. Marketing assistance loans are nonrecourse because the commodity is pledged as loan collateral and producers have the option of delivering the pledged collateral to the CCC as full payment for the loan at maturity.

 
Loan Rates for Refined Beet Sugar

 
The refined beet sugar processing regions and applicable 2005-crop (Fiscal Year [FY] 2006) loan rates are:

 
Region
Cents Per Pound of Refined Beet Sugar
Michigan and Ohio
24.09
Minnesota and the eastern half of North Dakota
22.80
Northeastern quarter of Colorado, Nebraska and the southeastern quarter of Wyoming
23.21
Montana, northwestern quarter of Wyoming and the western half of North Dakota
22.73
Idaho, Oregon and Washington
22.16
California
24.05

 
Loan Rates for Raw Cane Sugar

 
The 2005-crop (FY 2006) raw cane sugar loan rates are:

 
State
Cents Per Pound of Cane Sugar, Raw Value
Florida
7.86
Hawaii
7.17
Louisiana
18.36
Texas
17.99

 
*18.00 cents per pound if stored on the mainland.

 
Sugar beet and sugarcane processors who receive CCC loans in FY 2006 are required to make minimum grower payments for all sugar beets and sugarcane received from growers. Processors failing to meet the required minimum grower payment will be ineligible for loans. Sugar beet grower minimum payments are the amount specified in the grower/processor contract. Sugarcane processors must pay at least the following payment levels, for average quality sugarcane, to their growers. A grower's payment level can be adjusted according to the quality adjustment method in the grower/processor contract.

 
State
Minimum Payment
Florida
$27.94 per net ton
Hawaii
$24.25 per net ton
Louisiana
$24.64 per gross ton
Texas
$22.94 per gross ton

 
USDA's Sugar Loan Program provides nonrecourse loans to processors of domestically grown sugarcane and sugar beets. The USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA) administers nonrecourse loans for the 2002 through 2007 crops on behalf of the CCC. Sugar and in-process sugar loans are available beginning October 1 each fiscal year and mature at the earlier of (1) the end of the 9-month period beginning on the first day of the first month after the month in which the loan is made, or (2) the end of the fiscal year in which the loan is made.

 
For more information, contact your local USDA Service Center or Barbara Fecso at (202) 720-4146, barbara.fecso@usda.gov.

 
NOTE: Farm Service Agency (FSA) news releases are accessible through FSA's home page: http://www.fsa.usda.gov.