How to Get a Farm Number: Our Visit to the Farm Service Agency
September 3, 2026
The question is “how do I get an FSA farm services number”.. Well we took a trip to the USDA office and walked out with a farm number, a stack of demystified paperwork, and a $650/acre program we didn’t know we qualified for. We learned
In this Offshoot Edition of Branching Out: Growing Together, we sit down with our local FSA and NRCS team to break down what a USDA Service Center actually does, how to get a farm number, what that “HEL” label on your field really means, and why the annual crop acreage report is worth five minutes of your time every year.
What we cover:
The difference between FSA (records and programs) and NRCS (land and conservation)
How to get a USDA farm number — no fee, no test, just a conversation
Why “Highly Erodible Land” isn’t the penalty it sounds like
The Assistance for Specialty Crop Farmers (ASCF) program: $650/acre for chestnuts
Why meeting your local team before you need something pays off
With thanks to our local Kentucky USDA team: Robin Hughes, Barbara Meredith, Sandra Childress, and Hallie Armstrong (FSA), and Fanny Ye and Robert Bean (NRCS).
Find your local Service Center: https://www.fsa.usda.gov/fsa-office-locator
Learn about the ASCF program: https://www.fsa.usda.gov/resources/programs/assistance-specialty-crop-farmers-ascf-program
Join the conversation: https://www.facebook.com/unitedchestnuts
#ChestnutFarming #Agroforestry #USDA #FarmServiceAgency #SpecialtyCrops