Apr30
$1.3 BILLION IN PAYMENTS ARE TO BE ISSUED BY USDA THROUGH SECOND MARKETING ASSISTANCE PROGRAM TO SPECIALTY CROP PRODUCERS
On April 29, 2025, the United States Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins announced the second round of Marketing Assistance for Specialty Crops (MASC) payments would be disbursed to eligible specialty crop producers and provide up to $1.3 billion in additional program assistance.
In the first disbursement of payments, eligible specialty crop producers received approximately $900 million by USDA FSA. The MASC program was announced in December of 2024 and authorized $2 billion in Commodity Credit Corporation funds to help specialty crop growers address rising input costs and assist them in expanding their presence in domestic markets. Stakeholder feedback and program demand drove funding to increase to $2.65 billion in January 2025. The application period for MASC closed January 10, 2025.
MASC helps specialty crop producers meet higher marketing costs associated with:
- spoilage of specialty crops including fruit, vegetables, floriculture, nursery crops and herbs,
- handling and transport equipment specialized to control temperature and humidity,
- proper packaging to prevent product damage,
- quickly transporting perishable specialty crops to the market, and
- increasing labor costs.
Commercially marketed specialty crops covered by MASC include fresh and dried fruit, tree nuts, vegetables, dry edible beans and peas, mushrooms, vegetable seeds, tree nuts, nursery crops, Christmas trees, floriculture, culinary and medicinal herbs and spices, honey, hops, maple sap, tea, turf grass, grass seed, and additional specialty crops listed in USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service’s specialty crop definition webpage.
