Gov. Blunt asks Ag Dept. for assistance

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) -- Gov. Matt Blunt is asking the U.S. Department of Agriculture to declare 67 Missouri counties natural disaster areas.

Blunt sent a letter to Secretary of Agriculture Ed Schafer on Tuesday asking him to declare the 67 counties as natural disaster areas for agricultural losses due to excessive moisture and flooding related damages.

Blunt recently dispatched the Missouri Farm Service Agency to assess the damage in the 67 counties. The agency reports that in the 67 counties estimated yields are lower than average and or farmers in each county have suffered production losses over 30 percent.