NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The U.S. Department of Agriculture has declared eight Mississippi counties and six Louisiana parishes disaster areas due to flooding earlier this year.
Louisiana Agriculture Commissioner Mike Strain, who announced the declaration Monday, said farmers in the affected areas may be eligible for federal low-interest loans or other aid. He says Gov. Bobby Jindal has requested a broader declaration because of drought conditions earlier this year and heavy rains later.
Rainy weather has slowed fall harvest. According to USDA, 34 percent of the state's cotton was in as of Sunday. Normally, harvest is nearly done by now.
Strain says it's been a tough few years for farmers, with two hurricanes in 2008 alone, and that producers are in need of disaster aid "more than ever."
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