FERRIDAY, La. — Concordia Parish can expect to receive $200,000 from the latest round of federal payments to farmers, a U.S. Farm Service Agency official confirmed Friday.

Kevin Case, director of the FSA office in Ferriday, said soybean farmers can begin to apply Monday for their share of $500 million in payments Congress has approved for oilseed producers.

&uot;This will certainly help, because some of our soybean producers are in bad shape&uot; due to three years of drought conditions, Case said of the payments, which were announced Wednesday by Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman.

Farmers who produced oilseeds — crops such as soybeans, canola, crambe, flaxseed, mustard, rapeseed, safflower, sesame and sunflowers — in 2000 can apply for the payment program. The amount of the payments will be based on the higher of the producer’s 1997, 1998 or 1999 oilseed acreage and yield.

Projected payment rates will be different for each crop — in the case of soybeans, an estimated 14 cents per bushel.

&uot;This assistance is greatly needed for the more than 600,000 oilseed producers who are continuing to receive lower market prices for their oilseed crops,&uot; Glickman said.

As of Friday, farmers in northeast Louisiana were getting $4.43 to $4.44 per bushel from grain elevators for their soybeans, according to figures from the Associated Press.

In Louisiana, soybeans suffered an estimated $54.77 million in losses this year due to drought conditions, according to figures from the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry.

In July and August, &uot;most of the state suffered through the driest two months since records have been kept,&uot; said Agriculture Commissioner Bob Odom. &uot;The cumulative impact on the rural economies of Louisiana has been tremendous.&uot;

But these are not the only payments farmers have received this year. Concordia Parish farmers received $9 million in emergency payments earlier this year, receiving the last of the checks in early September, Case said.

Farmers are expected to receive more disaster funds, and the parish’s 100 livestock producers could also receive financial assistance.