By NANCY VORIS
Indiana Correspondent

COLUMBUS, Ind. — As Indiana’s unseasonably warm, dry autumn gave way to a slight chill, USDA Deputy Secretary Kathleen Merrigan announced the recipients of loan guarantees and grants for the purpose of energy efficiency on Hoosier farms and businesses. She was also able to address other agricultural questions surrounding her work in Washington, D.C.

Merrigan recognized two of the recipients during a tour of the Columbus area farm of Richard O’Neal, one of the 52 Indiana producers and business owners selected to receive funding through the USDA Rural Energy for America Program (REAP).

O’Neal was able to help fund an energy-efficient grain dryer, the goal of most of the state’s recipients. He expects a 30 percent savings on energy, saying the investment is “good for our farm and the energy of the nation.”

Another recipient, Stanley Back, of Ripley County, said he didn’t get to test his new grain dryer this year because the grain was already dry, but expects a five-year payback of the investment in energy savings.

“The vast majority of funding in Indiana went for energy efficiency measures,” Merrigan told producers. “That’s very important, because it is going to help your bottom line.”

Some business owners also received funding, including the Big Fish-N Campground in Tippecanoe County which received a $17,000 REAP grant to install solar panels to reduce the campground’s energy costs by 50 percent.

Hundreds of rural businesses and farmers in Indiana have benefited from the REAP program during the past few years. Michael Cadwallader received a $43,000 REAP grant earlier this year to purchase a new grain dryer and make energy efficiency improvements to his farm in Lucerne.

Cadwallader installed a new storage bin, a new air system, a new dryer and upgraded the electrical system to process the estimated 1,000 acres of corn he harvests each year. He expects the energy cost reduction will save him about 10 cents a bushel.

The nearly $2 million in funding is authorized through the Food, Conservation and Energy Act of 2008 (Farm Bill) and is administered by USDA Rural Development. Nationwide, nearly 2,300 projects received funding.

REAP funding can be used for renewable energy systems, energy efficiency improvements, feasibility studies energy audits and renewable energy development assistance. More information on the REAP program is available at www.rurdev.usda.gov/BCP_ReapResEei.html

Funding of each recipient is contingent upon the recipient meeting the conditions of the grant or loan agreement. For a complete list of Indiana REAP recipients, go to www.rurdev.usda.gov/supportdocuments/Indiana_REAP_Chart.pdf
Merrigan replied to questions on the nation’s next farm bill, saying “the games have already begun.” She said rural development and beginning farmers are a high priority in discussions.

She talked about the out-migration of young people from farming and rural communities in America, calling it heartbreaking.
“I hope that when you finish your education, you will be able to find a way to come back to the farm,” she told a young boy in the audience.

As she travels around the country talking to producers and consumers alike, she is amazed at the public perception of what USDA dollars actually fund. In surveys at colleges, respondents believed that 80 percent of the USDA budget goes to farm subsidies, when in actuality 70 percent of monies fund nutrition programs.

“There is also a broad disconnect between where USDA resources go and the roles farmers play in stewardship that leaves me worried going into budget times,” Merrigan said. “But in my 30 years in agriculture policy, I have never seen people more interested in agriculture and where their food comes from. More people want to talk about their food, and the agriculture community should not be afraid of this, but seize the opportunity to tell their story.”