Specialty crop farmers ASCF deadline is today — April 24, 2026. USDA’s Farm Service Agency reopened the 2025 crop acreage reporting period on March 31 after requests from specialty crop producers, industry leaders, and members of Congress. The original deadline had already passed. FSA Administrator Bill Beam said the decision to reopen the period was made to ensure every eligible producer has a fair opportunity to participate. Producers who have not yet filed their 2025 acreage report with FSA need to act today. Payments under the Assistance for Specialty Crop Farmers program are calculated based on reported 2025 planted acres. No acres reported means no payment.
The ASCF program was announced by Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins on February 13, 2026. It is authorized under the Commodity Credit Corporation Charter Act and is designed to address the combination of market disruptions, elevated input costs, persistent inflation, and losses from foreign competitors using unfair trade practices that cut into U.S. specialty crop exports. Commodity-specific payment rates will be released by USDA shortly after the acreage reporting deadline closes today.
Specialty crop farmers ASCF deadline covers more than 100 eligible crops
The list of ASCF-eligible crops is extensive, covering more than 100 specialty crops across fruits, vegetables, nuts, and other commodities. The full list includes almonds, apples, apricots, avocados, blueberries, cherries, citrus, cranberries, grapes, hazelnuts, lettuce, macadamia, mangoes, melons, olives, onions, peaches, pears, pecans, peppers, pistachios, potatoes, raspberries, strawberries, sweet corn, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, walnuts, and dozens more. Dry edible beans and peas covered under the Farmer Bridge Assistance program are not eligible for ASCF. Producers cannot receive payments under both programs for the same commodity.
To complete acreage reporting, producers should contact their local FSA county office to make an appointment. Online applications require a Login.gov account. USDA strongly encourages producers who do not yet have one to create an account at login.gov before applying. Those who complete acreage reporting today will be positioned to apply online quickly once FSA opens the ASCF application period. The program does not require crop insurance linkage, though USDA is urging producers to take advantage of the risk management tools in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. For more context on the broader specialty crop financial assistance landscape, Agroinformacion covered Chairman Thompson’s push for $20 billion in emergency aid split equally between row crops and specialty growers.
What happens after the specialty crop farmers ASCF deadline passes today?
Once today’s acreage reporting window closes, FSA will process the reported data and announce commodity-specific payment rates. The timeline for actual payment disbursements has not been specified in the announcement. Producers who miss today’s deadline will not be eligible to receive ASCF assistance for 2025 losses under this program. FSA said it will release more details on the application period after the deadline. USDA is processing assistance through local FSA county offices and online through the FSA website. The original announcement was published by the USDA Farm Service Agency on March 31, 2026.