United States Department of Agriculture Administrator Richard Fordyce announced Wednesday that 11 Mississippi counties have been designated as primary natural disaster areas.

Producers in Clarke, Hinds, Kemper, Leake, Madison, Monroe, Neshoba, Noxubee, Rankin, Scott and Smith counties who suffered losses caused by high winds and tornadoes that occurred on April 13 and April 18, may be eligible for USDA Farm Service Agency emergency loans.

This designation allows FSA to extend emergency credit to producers recovering from natural disasters.

Emergency loans can be used to meet various recovery needs including the replacement of essential items such as equipment or livestock, reorganization of a farming operation or the refinance of certain debts.

Producers in the contiguous Mississippi counties of Attala, Chickasaw, Claiborne, Clay, Copiah, Covington, Holmes, Itawamba, Jasper, Jones, Lauderdale, Lee, Lowndes, Newton, Oktibbeha, Simpson, Warren, Wayne, Winston and Yazoo are also eligible to apply for emergency loans.

The deadline to apply for these emergency loans is January 13, 2020.

FSA will review the loans based on the extent of losses, security available and repayment ability.

Farmers may contact their local USDA service center for further information on eligibility requirements and application procedures for these and other programs.

Additional information is also available online at www.farmers.gov/recover.