Protecting Our Produce Act

The Protecting Our Produce Act (S 4982) establishes a 5-year pilot program starting in 2025 to provide payments to small-scale farmers growing specific seasonal crops like asparagus, bell peppers, blueberries, cucumbers, and squash. Payments are triggered when the current market price for a crop falls below a 5-year average reference price (excluding extreme high/low years) and the drop is caused by imports. To qualify, farmers must earn less than $5 million annually on average over three years and derive at least 75% of income from farming. The program allocates $200 million annually for payments calculated based on the price difference between the reference and current market prices.