WASHINGTON (May 7, 2008)—The furor over grocery store sticker shock reached a boiling point last Thursday as the Congressional Joint Economic Committee held a hearing to investigate the impact these food prices are having on everyday Americans. Tom Buis, the president of the National Farmers Union, told the Committee that he and all growers sympathize…
DetailsWASHINGTON (Apr. 30, 2008)—With the farm community’s attention focused squarely on finishing the farm bill deliberations, little notice was paid to an important meeting held at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) last week. Bart Chilton, a CFTC Commissioner, said of the meeting to examine the impact of crop prices on farmers, “Commodity prices are…
DetailsIn the fifth installment of our ongoing series about the unsubstantiated claims from farm policy opponents, Farm Policy Facts will examine a recent claim made by the Bush Administration about the farm bill that’s left a lot of folks on the Hill scratching their heads. Myth: This farm bill does not meet Administration demands and…
DetailsIn the fourth installment of our ongoing series about the unsubstantiated claims by farm policy opponents, Farm Policy Facts will take a closer look at a recent claim made by the Bush Administration about the pending farm bill. Myth: “At a time of record farm incomes, Congress decided to further increase farm subsidy rates.” -Agriculture…
DetailsIn the third installment of our ongoing series about the unsubstantiated claims by farm policy opponents, Farm Policy Facts will examine the relationship between farm payments and food production. Myth: U.S. farm policy benefits corporate agribusinesses at the expense of the family farm. The Truth: Corporate Agribusinesses as you would think of it (global firms…
DetailsIn the second installment of our ongoing series about the unsubstantiated claims by farm policy opponents, Farm Policy Facts will examine the notion that commodity programs break the bank. Myth: Federal farm programs are outrageously expensive and U.S. Taxpayers would benefit from their elimination. The Truth: Commodity programs have always accounted for less than one…
DetailsPresident John Adams once said, “Facts are stubborn things.” Opponents of farm policy obviously didn’t get the memo. During this farm bill, a handful of special interest groups and big city papers have continued to regurgitate numerous myths about farm programs even though the numbers prove these arguments to be blatantly false. Over the next…
DetailsBy: Senator Norm Coleman After months of negotiations, congressional negotiators are on the cusp of a farm bill agreement that’ll provide the framework necessary to quickly complete reauthorization of the nation’s farm policy. This will be the product of a consistent, bipartisan, cross-regional and bicameral effort in Congress. With the spring planting season nearly upon…
DetailsWASHINGTON (Apr. 9, 2008)—“It has become painfully obvious that, even though the 2007 sugarcane crop was a good one in most areas, most growers showed little or no profit,” a well-respected agricultural consultant in southern Louisiana told local ag leaders in a letter last month. According to Dr. Calvin Viator, the letter’s author, input prices…
DetailsWASHINGTON (Apr. 1, 2008)—In April 2002—as Congress was struggling to pass a farm bill-CNN ran a story about high oil prices. Oil futures in New York were $27.38 a barrel at the time of this story, which proclaimed, “[T]he impact of rising wholesale prices since September has already spilled over at the pumps…there appears to…
DetailsBy: Congressman Charlie Melancon My colleague, Congressman Charles Boustany (R), and I recently hosted “Farm Day 2008” in Louisiana, where we heard from members of the state’s agricultural community. The one issue that came up over and over again during the program was getting past partisan bickering in DC and getting a farm bill passed…
DetailsBelow is a letter from a concerned citizen and farmer who shared his comments on the debate on the pending farm bill. Dear Farm Policy Facts, As an active participant in the farm policy debate it would be appropriate to say a few words to the folks on Capitol Hill before they make their final…
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