by Cristina DC Pastor Small-town Bourg near New Orleans boasts sprawling houses and luxury shops, including a motel for pets — it has become a pretty typical model of modern urban sprawl. But Bourg’s history, and what long-time residents would still say that keeps this parish thriving, is agriculture. Farming feeds people, said farm owner…
Agriculture Committee Chairman Frank Lucas (R-OK) is urging his colleagues to vote NO on an amendment proposed by Rep. Jeff Fortenberry (R-NE) that aims to place additional regulatory requirements on our nations farmers and ranchers: Dear Colleague: I write to urge your strong opposition to the amendment by Rep. Jeff Fortenberry (R-NE) that aims to…
Two Dear Colleagues currently circulating highlight the importance of voting NO on the Kind amendment that aims to destroy crop insurance: Oppose Kind Amendment #149 That Aims to Destroy Federal Crop Insurance FROM: The Honorable Frank D. Lucas, Chairman, House Agriculture Committee The Honorable Collin Peterson, Ranking Member, House Agriculture Committee Dear Colleague: I write…
In just about every walk of life, we look for ways to manage risk. Insurance protection is available to protect our families, our health, our homes, our vehicles. It only makes sense that insurance protection should be available to help farmers and ranchers produce something that everyone must have to survive: the nation’s food supply. Unfortunately there are…
Members of the agriculture community applauded the House Committee on Agriculture for moving forward on a five-year farm bill and called for timely action by the full House of Representatives in a letter sent to lawmakers this week. “Failure to pass a five-year farm bill before the end of September would mean continued uncertainty for…
Farm Policy Facts, a diverse coalition of agricultural organizations dedicating to raising awareness about the important role agriculture plays in our economic recovery and national security, today launched a new ad campaign, “Real Farms, Real Families.” The ad campaign, which will run during the upcoming Congressional Farm Bill negotiations, will feature real photos taken by farmers…
Guest opinion by Mark Gerdes, as appears in Ames Tribune One of the beauties of life in our great democracy is that spirited debate about important public policies is not only expected, it’s encouraged. One of the intrinsic rules of these discussions, if they are to be productive and fair, is that the policy itself should…
by Tonya Allen As Farm Bill negotiations continue, opponents of farm policy are again ratcheting up the rhetoric about all of the “rich and famous farmers” in America that are rolling in the dough. It might make for a nice sound bite, but it’s hardly the truth. There’s a “thin green line” of only 210,000…
A new comprehensive analysis of the recently released National Trade Estimates (NTE) and Sanitary and Phyto-Sanitary (SPS) reports show an international playing field sharply tilted against U.S. producers. The analysis, authored by veteran trade advisor and former Assistant U.S. Trade Representative Don Phillips, details the many barriers and obstacles currently facing U.S. exporters (both tariff and…
On the issue of means testing in crop insurance, the devil is certainly in the details. But in order to actually find that devil, all you need is a calculator. Take, for example, the introductory remarks on the Senate floor by Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL), who in the context of his amendment to means test crop insurance, inaccurately stated…
by Rene Pastor It’s hard to imagine food rationing was part of daily life in the United States, especially when you can go into your grocery store of choice and buy everything from a steak to a sack of sugar. That wasn’t the reality more than 70 years ago during World War II when German U-boats…
Total government spending on farm safety net programs – including all commodity programs and crop insurance – dropped by two-thirds from fiscal years 2000 to 2012, according to data provided by USDA and the Congressional Budget Office. The reduction took place as spending on commodity programs – including direct, counter-cyclical, loan deficiency and other payments which once…