摘要：The Farm Service Agency (FSA) direct farm loan programs provide credit to family-sized farms including beginning farmers and socially disadvantaged applicants. Approximately 37 percent of all U.S. farms are estimated to be eligible for FSA direct loans when farm size, credit needs, years of farming experience, and occupation are taken into account. Market penetration ratios for various cohorts of borrowers ranged from 0.75 to 5.13 for fiscal 2000-2003. Results suggest a substantial regional dispersion, which appears driven, in part, by the distribution of farmers eligible for FSA direct loans and the occurrence of natural-disasters.
