The two largest farming groups in the United States called for swift passage of the farm bill by a congressional conference committee.
Faced with the lowest farm income in 12 years, the presidents of the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) and National Farmers Union (NFU) are asking Senate and House conferees to move quickly. Everything from commodity price supports to childhood nutrition, soil and water conservation, trade promotion and more depend on swift passage.
“America’s farmers and ranchers persevere even in the toughest times, but the farm economy has gone from bad to worse,” AFBF President Zippy Duvall said. “Tariffs and stagnant global demand for commodities have left the agriculture economy in the worst shape we have seen since the farm crisis of the 1980s. Lender surveys and our own experience tell us spring could bring a wave of farm closures unless there’s major improvement in the marketplace.
The leaders of both organizations noted farmers and ranchers need the certainty a farm bill provides.
“Family farmers and ranchers are in need of certainty right now,” NFU President Roger Johnson said. “Low farm prices due to international trade disruptions, commodity market oversupply and domestic policy uncertainty are putting significant financial strain on farmers. If Congress is to provide real relief and certainty to those who feed, clothe and fuel our nation, as well as continue the important environmental sustainability work and diverse market promotion of past farm bills, they need to pass a strong farm bill before Sept. 30.”
AFBF and NFU, together with more than 150 other organizations, also sent a letter to the Senate and House Agriculture committees asking the farm bill conference committee to pass an on-time, five-year farm bill before the Sept. 30 expiration of the 2014 farm bill.