The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) will make $8 billion available for one-time payments to American farmers for the 2026 harvest season to provide relief during temporary market disruptions and increased input costs.

According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the average cost of retail diesel is $6.276/gallon, up from $2.656 a year ago. 

“President Trump is the most pro-farmer president of my lifetime and he is continuing to put Farmers First every day,” said Secretary of Agriculture Brooke L. Rollins. “Today, I am proud to announce alongside President Trump more targeted relief is coming to our farmers through the Harvest Fuel Relief program. This $8 billion dollar investment will help bring certainty to our farmers during this harvest so they can continue to feed our nation.”

Similar to the Farmer Bridge Assistance (FBA) program, the Harvest Fuel Relief (HFR) program will provide simple, proportional support to producers using a uniform formula to cover a portion of modeled losses during the 2026 crop year. This national loss average will be based on FSA reported planted acres, Economic Research Service cost of production estimates, and World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates yields and prices.

The $8 billion in payments provided through the Harvest Fuel Relief program are authorized under the Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) Charter Act and will be administered by the Farm Service Agency (FSA).

Commodity-specific payment rates for Title I commodities will be released in November 2026. Payment methodology for other eligible commodities will be announced at a later date. 

Producers of non-Title I commodities, including specialty crop growers and fishermen, are encouraged to provide data related to increased fuel costs to HarvestFuel@usda.gov for USDA’s consideration when determining payment rates.

The Harvest Fuel Relief program builds upon the Trump administration’s unprecedented support for America’s farmers. Earlier in 2026, the Farmer Bridge Assistance program delivered $12 billion in one-time bridge payments to more than 560,000 farmers across the country. 

Source: USDA October 19, 2026 news release