BULLETIN NO.: MGR-96-057

TO:       All Reinsured Companies
          All Risk Management Field Offices
          FSA Headquarters, Program Delivery and Field Operations

FROM:     Kenneth D. Ackerman
          Acting Administrator
          
SUBJECT:  Loss Procedure For Adjusting Damaged Onions In New York
          
BACKGROUND:    

Hail storms in southeast New York followed by abnormally cool and wet 
conditions have caused severe disease infestation in the onion crop.  The 
hail storms severely damaged the onion tops leaving the bulbs exposed to 
disease.  The condition of the crop deteriorated due to excess moisture and 
abnormally cool weather.  As a result, bacterial soft rot set in and spread 
to most of the onion crop acreage in Orange County, New York.  Preliminary 
appraisals indicate that on most acreage 50 percent or more of the onions 
contain bacterial soft rot infection.  Affected onions must be separated from 
non-affected onions to be marketable.  In most instances separating the 
onions is not practical when the infestation exceeds 50%.

The purpose of this bulletin is to transmit revised procedure for adjusting 
1996 crop year onion losses in New York due to bacterial soft rot.  

ACTION:

For the 1996 crop year only:

1.   If the appraisal reveals that 50 percent or more of the sampled onions 
     are infected with bacterial soft rot which occurred within the insurance 
     period, the production to count from the sampled areas will be considered 
     zero if the onions are not harvested.  

2.   If an insured elects to harvest and market onions from acreage with a 50 
     percent or greater incidence of bacterial soft rot, the production to 
     count will be based on the onion-by-onion appraisal method contained in 
     the Onion Handbook.  

3.   If the appraisal reveals that less than 50 percent of the sampled onions 
     are damaged and the acreage is not harvested, the appraised production 
     to count will be based on the onion-by-onion appraisal method contained 
     in the Onion Handbook.