State sets 0% interest on existing farm loans for a year
The change applies automatically to every active Utah Department of Agriculture and Food loan; two UDAF pages describe the optional payment-pause window differently.
CACHE COUNTY - Farmers and ranchers with existing Utah Department of Agriculture and Food loans will pay no interest for a year, according to UDAF's agricultural loans page. Starting Nov. 1, 2026, the rate on every existing UDAF loan is 0% through Oct. 31, 2027.
Borrowers don't need to do anything. The page says the change "will apply automatically to every active loan." On Nov. 1, 2027, rates return to each promissory note.
UDAF also offered an optional payment pause of up to 12 months. The program page sets an Oct. 31, 2026, request deadline; the home page says borrowers can defer as long as they opt in and contact the department, with no deadline listed.
Covered loans include Agriculture Resource Development, Emergency Disaster Relief and Rural Rehabilitation. As of publication, UDAF had not said on either page why it made the change or how many Cache County borrowers hold UDAF loans.
Why this matters
Cache County producers with an active UDAF loan will owe no interest for a year without filing. UDAF's pages list different payment-pause terms — an Oct. 31, 2026, deadline on the program page; no cutoff on the home page. Loan staff contacts are on the program page.
Source: Utah Department of Agriculture and Food, Agricultural Loans; UDAF home page notice.