WASHINGTON, April 12, 2005—The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agricultural Service recertified a petition for lychee producers in Florida under the Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) for farmers program. The producers may apply for TAA benefits through July 11, 2005.

Under the TAA program, USDA provides technical assistance and cash benefits to producers if an increase in imports of a like commodity has contributed importantly to a decline in price and a loss of income.

After an investigation, FAS determined that increasing imports of lychees contributed importantly to a decline in lychee prices in Florida during 2004 when compared to the applicable 1998-2002 base-period.

To apply for benefits, obtain an application (form FSA-229) on the Web at http://forms.sc.egov.usda.gov/eforms/mainservlet or from the local Farm Service Agency (FSA) service center. Check local phone listings for the closest service center or go to http://fsa.usda.gov and click on "your local office" for contact information. General information about the TAA program can be found on the Web at http://www.fas.usda.gov/itp/taa/taa.asp.

TAA benefits will include technical instruction to enhance farming income. Financial payments will be made to applicants who complete their technical training by September 30, 2005, and satisfy certain income criteria. Producers receiving TAA payments may also apply to the Department of Labor for job retraining.

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PR 0057-05
Contact: Donald Washington (202) 720-3101