Reports - Mississippi Renewal

110 | AGRICULTURE, FORESTRY, AND MARINE RESOURCEStion assistance for producers. Theamount is based on the loss of 6million birds, averaging a weight of5.5 pounds, at a loss of 5 cents perpound. USDA may be an availablefunding resource.■ House damage and loss. While almostall producers have some formof insurance on their poultry houses,due to tax depreciation, manyfarmers will not receive insurancepayouts that approximate their reconstructionor repair costs. TheCommission supports the implementationof a cost-share assistanceprogram that would help rebuildpoultry houses after insurance settlements,in addition to low-interestdisaster loans for the producer.USDA grant opportunities may existto fund this program.Advancing environmental issues. MississippiState University and the Land,Water, & Timber Resources Board areconducting research and demonstrationprojects that address problems associatedwith litter disposal. Considering the importanceof the industry, a priority mustbe placed upon finding effective methodsfor disposal that are environmentallysafe, non-offensive to the public,and practical to the farmer. Additionally,the state Department of EnvironmentalQuality is studying a project funded bythe Land, Water and Timber ResourcesBoard that involves installing an on-thefarmanaerobic digester to turn poultrylitter into methane gas, thereby eliminatingodor concerns.Accelerating port redevelopment. Thestate should immediately rebuild thecommercial components of the portfacilities in Pascagoula and Gulfport,which shipped more poultry to Russiathan any other port in the United States.Prior to rebuilding the ports, temporaryPoultry—Mississippi’slargestagricultrualindustry—facesunprecedentedeconomic andenvironmentalchallenges.freezer facilities must be secured and installedto allow Mississippi products tobe exported to world markets.Mississippi replacement tax relief.The industry standard tax on replacementparts is 1.5 percent. While Mississippi’stax is 1.5 percent on start-uppurchases, replacement parts are taxedat 7 percent. To assist poultry farmers inreplacing parts and machinery damagedor destroyed by Hurricane Katrina, thestate legislature should lower the statetax on such replacement parts and servicesto the industry standard.Beef and Dairy CattleFEMA assistance. An estimated 175dairy farms sustained $8 million inequipment, materials, labor, and dumpedmilk losses. It is estimated that farmersspent approximately $437,500 overnormal operational expenses for energycosts alone. The Commission recommendsthat FEMA assistance be securedto reimburse these dairy producers forup to 100 gallons of diesel fuel per day.Due to milk being considered a “criticalfood,” Louisiana dairy farmers receivedthe payments, and Mississippi dairyfarmers should be similarly reimbursed.Dairy Disaster Assistance Program.Another substantial source of incomeloss caused by Hurricane Katrina todairy producers was the dumping ofmilk because producers were unable tokeep it cool or transport trucks were incapableof accessing the farms.Throughout South Mississippi, grazingopportunities for the fall have beenlost due to the loss of fencing, lack ofresources to plant rye grass, and reducedgrazing capacity because of drought.Moreover, some winter feed supplieswere destroyed by hurricanes, and earlyuse of hay and silage supplies will createa short supply. As a result, fall graz-