The Farm Service Agency, acting on behalf of the Commodity Credit Corporation, has rice loans available to farmers and landowners who produced a 2008 crop and still has beneficial interest in the crop. According to Doug Davidson, County Executive Director in the Richland Parish Farm Service Agency Office, the rice may be stored on the farm or in a CCC-approved warehouse that issues warehouse receipts.

The 2008 rice farm stored loan rates by Class, Rough Basis, per hundredweight (cwt) for Louisiana is as follows: The long grain rate is $6.51; the medium grain and short grain rate is $6.48. This represents a 38 cent decrease in long grain, a 56 cent increase in medium and a 20 cent increase in short grain from the 2007 rates.

Davidson went on to explain 2008 Milled Rice Loan Rates as follows: For rice stored in commercial warehouses, the whole kernel milled rice loan rates are $10.00 per cwt for long grain and $9.78 per cwt for medium and short grain. The broken kernel loan rate for all classes is $6.67 per cwt. This represents a 12 cent per cwt decrease in the whole kernel long grain loan rate, a 38 cent per cwt increase in whole kernel medium and short grain, and a 14 cent per cwt decrease in the broken kernel loan rate. Milled rice loan rates are computed using average milling yields and production percentages by class, thus ensuring that the production-weighted national average rough rice loan rate equals the statutory $6.50 per cwt.

The 2008 Rice Loan Rate Discounts are as follows: The loan rate discounts for grades (per cwt of rough rice) lower than Grade #2 are unchanged from the 2007 crop. The discounts are $0.30 for Grade #3, $0.60 for Grade #4, $1 for Grade #5, $2.00 for Grade #6, and $5.50 for Sample Grade.

According to Davidson, discounts for smut content (per cwt of rough rice) are also unchanged at 5 cents for 0.1 to 1.0-percent smut; 10 cents for 1.1 to 2.0-percent smut; and 15 cents for 2.1 to 3-percent smut.