While this single sentence may seem inconsequential, it has far-reaching impacts. It may seem like only the sod producers participating in NAP insurance programs benefit from this work, but there is much more to this language than that. Our efforts can have a positive impact on everyone in the industry, not just TPI members.
One recent example was 2020 Covid Relief. Sod farmers were originally left out of $16 billion in Covid Relief Funds in May of 2020 and again left out of an additional $14 billion in September of 2020. It was only by TPI going to Washington, DC, and working with USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) that covid relief funds were opened up to sod producers. As a direct result of our efforts, FSA announced in January of 2021 that sod producers were eligible for up to $210 million in Covid Relief Funds. Back to the question, what are these efforts worth? Well, unlike the example above about fighting a traffic ticket, I can confidently say that TPI member dues are less than the $250,000 max payout that came with covid relief funds back in 2021.
Continuing onto today, the legacy of our 2020 Covid Relief Efforts at USDA continues to pay dividends. In January of 2025, USDA’s Farm Service Agency released up to $2.65 billion in relief funds called Marketing Assistance for Specialty Crops (MASC) designed to help growers with rising input costs and aid in the expansion of domestic markets. I believe the maximum payout for that program was $900,000. As a result of our 2020-21 efforts at USDA’s Farm Service Agency, turfgrass sod producers were not only included in this program but were even specifically mentioned under the list of eligible commodities.
Another recent example was Covered Farm Vehicle Exemptions. In 2018, a TPI member in Alabama alerted me that an official from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) stated that sod was not an agricultural commodity and as such should not be allowed to claim the many exemptions granted to them as Covered Farm Vehicles. I immediately went to work on this by filing a 60-page petition with the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) and requesting an in-person meeting with DOT officials in Washington, DC.
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It took almost three years of work, but in 2020, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration announced a new definition of agricultural commodities under 49 CFR 395.2 to include sod as follows:
Agricultural commodity means:
(1) Any agricultural commodity, non-processed food, feed, fiber, or livestock as defined in this section.
(2) As used in this definition, the
term “any agricultural commodity” means horticultural products at risk of perishing, or degrading in quality, during transport by commercial motor vehicle, including plants, sod, flowers, shrubs, ornamentals, seedlings, live trees, and Christmas trees.
Keeping along with the theme of value, what are covered farm vehicle plates worth? And all of the exemptions granted with them? It’s hard to assign a specific monetary value to all of the exemptions that come with farm plates, but needless to say this new definition will serve our industry for many years to come. Having sod officially stated in this new language removes any confusion as to sod as an agricultural commodity. Now, does that mean that every highway patrol officer, local judge, etc. knows this? Of course not. As I mentioned earlier, I still have sod producers contact me now, five years after we got this new language approved, to say they are having trouble locally with someone not understanding the many exemptions granted to sod producers. If that happens in your area, please call or email me and we’ll be happy to get to work on it. It’s what we are here for!
TPI Turf News July/August 2025
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