NCC Praises Move to Reinstate Commodity Marketing Certificates

By Jim Steadman|February 4, 2016

USDA earned the thanks of the U.S. cotton industry by announcing the implementation and availability of commodity marketing certificates as part of the Marketing Loan Program (MLP) available to all loan eligible commodities.

The National Cotton Council (NCC) praised the move in a statement issued February 4, saying, “The cotton industry is encouraged to see this functionality and effectiveness restored to the MLP.”

There is a long history of certificates being available as part of the MLP to ensure the program functions as intended, allowing commodities to continue to flow to the marketplace and end users, and to prevent the forfeiture of commodities to USDA. In periods of depressed commodity prices, the MLP cannot function as intended to provide a minimum level of price stability to producers.

The NCC – on behalf of the U.S. cotton industry – strongly commended House Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman Aderholt (R-AL), House Agriculture Committee Chairman Conaway (R-TX), Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Cochran (R-MS) and Senate Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman Moran (R-KS) for all of their efforts to ensure this provision was included in the FY16 Agriculture Appropriations bill, providing USDA the authority to again make available marketing certificates for the redemption of loan commodities.

The NCC also expressed thanks to Agriculture Secretary Vilsack and his team at USDA that have worked since late December to develop the necessary regulations and provisions to implement this critically important provision.