Leaders Urge Fast Farm Bill Action at International Sweetener Symposium
Leaders of the House Agriculture Committee want Congress to move fast on the new Farm Bill, and they will have the support of America’s largest farm groups.
Hearings Demonstrate Top Concerns for Ag Producers
Making sure America’s farmers and ranchers have the tools to compete on a global scale begins with a strong farm bill.
Equipment Sales Show Optimism Tied to Policy Promises
Policy experts are hopeful the momentum will continue, especially if Congress makes sound decisions regarding farm policy, which provides a foundation for the rural economy. But, there’s still a long way to go.
Our View: The Short Straw for Farmers Once Again
If the Trump administration’s first major budget plan became law, it most assuredly would harm our farmers, ranchers, and agricultural production.
Does the Heritage Foundation Hate American Farmers?
We wish the Heritage Foundation and all opponents of farm policy would understand: there is no free market when it comes to agriculture.
Our View: Stick Together & Keep Going
As Winston Churchill once said, “if you’re going through hell, keep going.” These days, there are plenty of reasons for farmers and ranchers to be anxious and feel like they are going through a similar journey.
‘A World of Hurt in Farm Country’
“No one saw this large and sustained drop coming,” explained Dr. Joe Outlaw of the Agricultural and Food Policy Center at Texas A&M University.
2016: A Year in Review with Farm Policy Facts
With a new year on the horizon, Farm Policy Facts is taking a look back at some of the top stories of 2016.
Rep. Cramer: How Critics of U.S. Farm Policy Have It Wrong
What if we could truly open up foreign markets and create a level playing field for our farmers and ranchers that actually passes the smell test?
#FarmerPortraits
Farm Policy Facts is beginning a new series this month on its digital platforms called #FarmerPortraits.
Standing Up for America’s Farm & Ranch Families
Our nation’s farm families provide us with the safest, most abundant, most affordable food and fiber supply in the history of the world. A fact that is so true it has become a cliché.
ICYMI: Nurturing the next generation of farmers
When it comes to farming, it seems the critics always have the easy answer. They portray this line of work as if every day brings blue skies and no worries. The reality is the farming business comes with a fair share of challenges; chief among them is the unpredictability of weather and markets. Anything can and will happen.
Our View: Heritage Recycles Old Proposal to Nix Risk Management Tools for Farmers
The Heritage Foundation has long opposed U.S. farmers and ranchers having any kind of meaningful safety net to protect against weather disasters, volatile markets, and predatory trade practices abroad. So, the fact that they published a report suggesting the elimination of farm policy is not new or noteworthy.
Our View: Where Would We Be Without Our Farmers?
Where would we be without our farmers? It’s a question we never want to have to answer.
New Videos Illustrate Support for Farmers & the ‘Dire Consequences’ for Gutting Farm Policy
A pair of videos, released this week from agricultural groups, seeks to educate Americans on the bipartisan support for America’s farmers.
Our View: A Big Fat Farce Returns
Crop prices are low, which means it’s high time for farm policy critics to trot out one of the most absurd criticisms of farm policy ever used.
New Study Reveals a Shocking Lack of Knowledge about Farm Policy at Farmers’ Expense
A major medical journal with a private vetting process published a study from authors with a clear agenda to attack one part of farm policy by using old data and one title of an even older farm bill to make a dubious association between farm policy and obesity.
A Wide Array of Voices Rally in Defense of the Farm Bill
It is not every day that there is widespread agreement in our nation’s Capitol, especially when it comes to budget matters. So, it is significant to highlight when such accord is demonstrably on display.
Shining A Light on Women in Agriculture One Photo at a Time
“Where are the women?” was not an existential question Marji Guyler-Alaniz asked herself one day after leaving her corporate job of 11 years. Rather it was a realization that the imagery – and perhaps even the perception – of the American farmer needed an update.
Pulling Back the Curtain on EWG’s Playbook
It is easier to sell fear than facts. This is a concept that the Environmental Working Group (EWG) knows all too well and has built a brand and an empire based on that business model. But, people are catching on to that game.
2015: A Year in Review with Farm Policy Facts
From continued attacks on the farm safety net in Washington to a sour farm economy, Farm Policy Facts takes a look at the top agriculture stories of 2015.
ICYMI: History Demonstrates the Importance of a Farm Safety Net
If my family had kept the farm, I would have been a fourth-generation farmer of a grain operation. But they couldn’t.
ICYMI: Don’t Squeeze Farmers to Balance the Budget
The United States should stop trying to balance its budget on the backs of farmers. It is bad policy, and there’s no room for further reductions.
Our View: An Attack On One Farmer’s Policy Is An Attack Upon All
The Farm Bill is needed now more than ever, and no thinly veiled plot by anti-farmer forces to pry open the Farm Bill is acceptable. An attack on one farmer’s policy is an attack upon all as far as we are concerned.
ICYMI: ‘Agriculture, as whole, rose up and said enough is enough’
“Agriculture, as a whole, rose up and said enough is enough,” said Steve Verett, the Executive Vice President of the Plains Cotton Growers.
Ag Outlook Underscores Importance of Capital, Strong Farm Policy
The next few years very well may be defining for the future outlook of agriculture. And the whole world has a lot riding on the outcome.
American Farm Families Expected to Lose Half their Farm Income this Year
USDA forecasts that when all is said and done, American farmers will have a combined farm income that is less than half of what it was just two years ago. This alone is staggering. But it may well mark just the beginning of a depressed farm economy the effects of which may very well adversely impact the entire sector and cascade across other sectors of our economy.
#ICYMI: Cuts to the Farm Safety Net Jeopardize a National Asset
If ever we lose the hard-working independent family farms that take care of the nation’s landscape while producing a diverse set of crops more reliably and efficiently than any farm sector in history, then, and only then will we truly understand the value they provide.
#ICYMI: Fight Foreign Subsidies, Don’t Unilaterally Disarm
Unilateral disarmament will do nothing to help U.S. consumers or a U.S. economy that depends on a thriving agricultural sector. It will only reward China and other bad actors, while leaving hardworking American farmers powerless the next time storm clouds gather.
Our View: Cultivating the Next Generation of Farmers
We have a strong foundation for cultivating the next generation of farmers in the 2014 Farm Bill, but the law needs to be fully implemented for any of this to matter. Although it is on the books for five years, it is likely to be under attack during the annual appropriations process.
#ICYMI: Evolution of farm policy benefits farmers, taxpayers
Some stereotypes about U.S. farm policy just won’t die. For example, the belief that farmers get paid for not growing; or that benefits just go to big agribusinesses; or that farm spending is out of control. Such criticisms make splashy headlines but are no longer relevant thanks to the significant evolution of farm policy over the past 20 years
Capitol Hill Leaders Dismiss EWG
“EWG has no credibility.” Farm Policy Facts has been saying this for years about the Environmental Working Group (EWG), and it looks like quite a few Capitol Hill leaders agree. The direct quote came from House Agriculture Committee ranking member Collin Peterson (D-Minn.), who spoke last week to The Hagstrom Report. Peterson was not alone in giving EWG a congressional smack down.
Our View: Despite Reforms, Farmers Face Same Old Depressing Attacks
Sometimes it seems like farm policy critics are stuck in the past, using the same old set of talking points for every congressional debate instead of taking the time to update them to reflect the real reforms that are underway.
Facts & Resources
Farm Policy Facts puts useful information about agricultural policy in one centralized place. With news exclusives, information from across heartland, and key facts about America’s farming community in one destination, FarmPolicyFacts.org is a must-read for policymakers, the media, and all interested parties involved in agricultural policy. Key Facts America’s farmers not only produce the world’s…
DetailsOur View: America’s Farmers Have Answered the Call for Budget Cuts
In times like these, Washington should be applauding the agricultural community for the contributions it has already made, not working to make things even harder by jeopardizing the one thing farmers should be able to count on: the just-passed farm safety net.
A Taxing Budget for Farmers
Much has been made about the President’s FY2016 budget and its proposed cuts to the risk management tools on which farmers depend. In fact, leaders of the House and Senate Agriculture Committees have been critical of the budget for its attack on crop insurance, and lawmakers recently received a pointed letter on the subject from…
A Big Bang for the Buck
Farm policy is a cost-effective safety net that supports the only industry to touch us all at least three times a day. Americans spend 10% of their incomes on food – the lowest of any country. Spending on farm policy including crop insurance was down 20% over the past five years. These policies account for…
Real Facts
21 million Americans produce, process and sell food and fiber. U.S. farms and ranches spent $329 billion to produce $388 billion in goods in 2012. America exported $136 billion in farm goods in 2011, with a $37 billion trade surplus. Americans spend 10% of their incomes on food – the lowest of any country. Spending…