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$100 million designated for co-ops

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has set aside $100 million to help grow cooperatives — any type of cooperative — in rural areas.

USDA Secretary Dan Glickman said a major challenge facing farmers and rural dwellers is transforming their raw commodities into products that can be sold close to the production site, thus keeping profits working locally. "For many, the best way to accomplish this will be through a cooperative they own and direct. This will benefit not only the producers, but also the rural communities in which they live."

The money comes through the Business and Industry Guaranteed Loan Program. Borrowers first seek financing from a local lender and the lender in turn seeks a guarantee from the USDA.

Existing or new cooperatives may use the loan guarantees for machinery and equipment, real estate, or for working capital. Family farmers may use them to help pay for stock in a start-up cooperative that processes their agricultural commodity into a value-added product.

Apply soon. After June 30, any portion of the $1 million not used will be released for any type of rural business. For details, call the Champaign Rural Development office at (217) 398-5412, the USDA's Rural Business-Cooperative Service in Washington, D.C., at (202) 720-0813, or the National Cooperative Business Association (NCBA) at (202) 638-6222. The NCBA represents more than 100 million Americans and 47,000 businesses ranging from small buying clubs to Fortune 500 businesses. Visit its website at www.cooperative.org.

More money for rural America

The Clinton-Gore administration has proposed an additional $457 million than 1998 to improve living conditions in rural America, with about $165 million of it for rural housing, business, and utility assistance.

The Rural Development budget comprises nearly 4 percent of the overall USDA budget of $54 billion. Rural America is home to 20 percent of the nation's people and encompasses about 80 percent of the land area.

"Rural parts of the nation have seen proportionately fewer benefits from the nation's booming economy than have suburban and urban areas," said Wally Furrow, state director for USDA Rural Development in Illinois.

The new budget, if approved, markedly increases two areas: the rural Housing Service and the Rural Utilities Service. The budget of the housing service, which helps finance single- and multiple-family housing, schools, medical clinics and fire stations, would grow from $5.6 billion to nearly $6 billion. The budget of RUS, which provides financing and technical assistance for water, waste water, electricity and telecommunications services, would grow from $3.1 billion in 1998 to $3.22 billion in 1999.

Funds for distance learning, telemedicine

Federal loans and grants are available for schools, health care providers, and other rural non-profit organizations for distance learning and telemedicine projects.

Since 1993 the Distance Learning and Telemedicine Loan and Grant program has funded 192 projects totaling $52 million and serving 850 schools and 600 medical facilities. Through the seed money provided through the loans and grants, almost four times its investment is leveraged through other private and public sources.

Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman said this year's program will have $150 million in loan funds to help stretch $12.5 million in grants for use in removing the barriers of time and distance from rural schools and rural medical care.

"The DLT program enables citizens of the most isolated community to have access to the same education and specialized medical technology as the citizens in the urban and suburban cities," Glickman said. "This investment will pay dividends in better educated students who will be better prepared to meet the challenges of the millennium."

The deadline for applications is June 1. For additional information, point your web browser to the Rural Utilities Service web site: www.usda.gov/rus or write to RUS/USDA, STOP 1590, Room 4056, 1400 Independence Ave., SW, Washington, D.C. 202-1590.

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It's the berries!

Strawberry growers will be interested in a new publication from the Northeast Regional Agricultural Engineering Service (NRAES).

Strawberry Production Guide for the Northeast, Midwest, and Eastern Canada is the most comprehensive production guide ever produced for strawberry growers.

It is written by 16 experts representing eight universities, and its 162 pages and 115 full-color photographs are contained in a three-ring binder. Information about membership in the North American Strawberry Growers Association also is included.

The book is available for $50 (includes shipping) from NRAES, Cooperative Extension, 152 Riley-Robb Hall, Ithaca, New York 14853-5701, or call (607) 255-7654.

Health careers camp for rural youth

A free Health Careers Summer Camp for Rural Youth will be held for the second time this year. The purpose of the camp is to encourage students' interest in health careers and to enhance the likelihood the students return to Illinois' rural areas to work in health care.

The camp, for high school sophomores and juniors, is held Aug. 14-16 near Bloomington and is sponsored by the Illinois Rural Health Association and the Illinois Area Health Education Center. Applications are due by May 22. For more information, call (217) 383-4641.

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