BOWLING GREEN -- In order to enable federal assistance for drought-stricken farms, the USDA has designated Williams, Defiance, Fulton and Henry counties as natural disaster areas.

This means farm operators in these counties can be considered for certain assistance from the Farm Service Agency.

More info: FSA Disaster Assistance Programs

Prior to the USDA announcement, Congressman Bob Latta (R-Bowling Green) and Ohio Agriculture Director David Daniels toured farms throughout northwest Ohio on Monday. The pair surveyed the drought's impact on local corn, soybean, and tomato crops in Fulton County and a dairy farm, which milks 180 cows, in Defiance County. 

"To the non-farmer, a drought means brown grass and the inconvenience of having to water gardens and flowers," Daniels said. "To the farmer, as we saw in our tour, it means thousands of dollars invested in a season’s crop that may yield next to nothing or livestock feed costs that are so high many will not be able to afford to feed their herds and flocks. Without rain or relief, I fear some will not be able to farm again next year."

According to a release from Rep. Latta, the latest drought monitor has counties within the Fifth Congressional District experiencing moderate to severe drought conditions. The most recent USDA crop bulletin reported that 50 percent of Ohio’s corn crops were poor to very poor.

“While there is no doubt that this drought has had a harmful effect on our farmers and livestock producers, these conditions present a larger problem on an economic scale. Ohio's food and agriculture industry yields $105 billion to the state's economy," Latta said. "As one of the largest agricultural districts in the state, many of the communities in the Fifth Congressional District, especially rural communities, are supported by the farms and small businesses within the agricultural industry.".