2012 Farm Bill
http://thedianerehmshow.org/shows/2012-05-24/2012-farm-bill
It affects everything we eat, yet it isn’t getting much attention. Reauthorization of the 2012 Farm Bill passed a Senate committee with bipartisan support. It awaits a full Senate vote, a House bill and conference before reaching President Barack Obama’s desk. The Senate proposal, known as the Agriculture Reform, Food and Jobs Act, eliminates $23 billion in spending. But not everyone is happy. Critics say it should do more to address environmental and nutritional concerns. Diane speaks with Senator Debbie Stabenow, chair of the Senate Agriculture Committee, Congressman Michael Conaway, chair of the House Agriculture General Farm Commodities and Risk Management Subcommittee, and a panel of experts about the changes ahead in U.S. agricultural policy.
Guests
Scott Faber
Vice President for Government Affairs, Environmental Working Group; former vice president, the Grocery Manufacturers Association.
Senator Debbie Stabenow
Democratic Senator from Michigan, Chair of the Senate Agriculture Committee
Congressman Michael Conaway
Republican representative of Texas' 11th district, and chair of the House Agriculture General Farm Commodities and Risk Management Subcommittee.
Jerry Hagstrom
founder and executive editor of The Hagstrom Report and columnist, National Journal
Chandler Goule
Vice President of Government Relations, National Farmers Union
Comments
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As Executive Director of the National Coalition for Food and Agricultural Research http://www.ncfar.org, I would like to applaud Senate Agriculture Committee Chairwoman Debbie Stabenow and the Committee for including a strong Research Title, and in particular for adding a new Foundation for Food and Agricultural Research, with mandatory funding to be used in leveraging outside funds and encouraging public-private partnerships. In the current challenging budget climate, this innovative approach will make a huge difference.
Investing in sound science is key to meeting the many challenges being discussed in each and every other title of the Farm Bill. Past scientific investments have made our current successes possible. However, an unsustainable deficit in food and ag research funding jeopardizes our future. Would appreciate today's panelists' commenting on the Farm Bill's Research title.
R. Thomas (Tom) Van Arsdall, Chester, Maryland
I would really like the guest to clarify the impact of this bill on Organic local farmers, and the negative entries in the bill on local producers and sellers.
One commentary on the bill, is that local production, sale and consumption of local produced food is banned by the poor language.
AKA Monsanto "reform" bill. I would like the guest to specify the tenants of the bill regarding local small-backyard farmers., redefining and making it impossible for them to actually grow or sell, and the commercialization/push to monsanto based big agriculture.
Today's show is another reason to stop the funding for NPR - this show is just a stage for Stabenow's re-election efforts.
Ms. Debbie: "I did this, I did that".....sickening. I had to turn it off.
I fail to see why any tax dollars are going to NPR, since they are part of the mainstream democrat media.
Let them fight for advertiser dollars like everyone else.
Please ask the guests to comment on the impact that the Farm Bill has on Obesity & health in the US.
Subsidizing corn & soybeans makes highly processed unhealthy foods cheaper than healthy foods. What about subsidizing vegetables & fruits...fresh, frozen, canned, organic, or non-organic???
Imagine the impact on the cost of healthcare in this country.
Could guests comment on the L’Aquila Food Security Initiative and the role of industrial agriculture giants such as Monsanto in providing funding to this initiative? Is there a danger of such companies gaining inappropriate influence (perhaps more so than they already have) through these donations?
The Farmer's Creed:
"Don't Blame Me"
by the U.S. Farmer.
Blame the goverments for regulations for preventing me from doing what I want. Who cares whether I abide by good farming practices?
Blame the goverments for making me do paperwork (Like no one else has to do paperwork)
Blame the weather. It is not my fault I planted the wrong crops this year. So I took a few risks. Hey, maybe I can get more low-interest loans again for disaster relief.
Blame the middle-market buyers who don't pay me enough. I want more profit.
Blame the insects. I want to use more insecticides to kill them. Who cares about pollution runoff from poisons and animal manure?
Blame the IRS for taxing me, even though I don't pay much in taxes anyway. Hee, hee.
Blame the Agricultural Department for not raising subsidies. I want more subsidy.
Blame the local government for not rezoning my property, so I can sell it to a real estate developer for track housing. But don't tax me on the gain.
Blame the FDA for not allowing me to use additives. Like who knows?
Blame the Immigration Department for not allowing more low-skilled migrants to process my product. Who cares that they are exploited?
Blame OSHA for forcing me to protect my workers from hazards. Get off my back.
Blame Congress for allowing imports. I don't want competition.
Blame consumers for not cooking their food better. Who cares about a little e-coli or salinoma from my product?
Blame big agribusiness. Blame the polititions. Blame the lobbists. Blame climate change.
None of this is MY fault, so don't blame me.
I have been involved in farming as row crop and as a dairy farmer for 40 years. In that time, I have not collected enough in insurrance on crops to pay for the premium in a given year. Obviously, I'm doing something wrong and leaving a lot of profit at the expense of the Federal Government on the table.
I am happy to see any changes to the farm bill to encourage conservation - it has been the advocation of my family for many years. Ideally, the government would pay me to sequester carbon. This would place a positive value on conservation and help reduce global warming.
Neal Grose
Please ask the Republican congressman for assurances that there will not be social issue agenda items attached to this farm bill.
Is the House willing to pass it CLEANLY?
Stories like this remind me of how pathetic American Corporations are today. Big government is bad,but they are always first in line,with the most expensive lobbyists,and the largest crying towels.
Cut food stamps for the starving,and keep steak and caviar lunches,DEDUCTIBLE ? JUST PLAIN NUTS !
END CORPORATE WELFARE, EVERYWHERE,NOW !!!
Re: Food Stamps I had a co-worker who was widowed and was raising 3 children, working 3 jobs. When she applied for Food Stamps she was told to quit at least one of her jobs and she could get assistance (with the 3 jobs she was only a few dollars over the limit). She refused stating "I would be setting a bad example for my children. I am able to work but just need a little help."
On another note I have heard that in many lower income neighborhoods Food Stamps are sold on the Black Market.
How can these issues be addressed?
As a resident of Texas I felt embarrassed that the Congressman from Texas couldn't even answer basic questions about program he's making major decisions on, such as the income requirements for SNAP. Just shows he doesn't really care about those people to not even be aware of such a basic piece of information about that program. He's made up his mind without any sort of real knowledge about the program or its requirements. Sad.
Your guest's comment about the difficulty of writing "one size fits all" regulations for factory-sized dairies and small family dairies is exactly right. So let's stop trying to write regulations that are the same for farms whose size makes them essentially completely different businesses. Small farms run as small businesses by families or small nonprofits (which is an increasingly popular model in local food systems) must be treated differently from agricultural factories run by corporations.
I have recently had to use food stamps for the first time in my life and am very grateful but I can tell you for 3 people 300 dollars per month is not enough when prices have sky rocketed for food. But still thankful.
This is correct because God forbid you earn any money, the people who try to work hard but can't afford everything do to inflation get screwed while people who sit on their butt and illegals get everything free.
As a 63 yr old black woman, fresh vegetables have always been a staple in our lives. My parents, Louisiana born, and their sibs, always planted gardens for over 50 yrs. I still cannot buy a 'hot house' tomato. Only vine ripened. corn does NOT cause obesity and soy ain't what it's cracked up to be. My children and now my grandchildren eat all natural foods. Sugar, no phony sweetener, flour, whole milk, cheese, fruits and they will fight you FOR a salad. The grands are 9, 6, 4, 2 and 99% of their meals are home cooked. Not fast food and we work. My parents did the same and we did that for our children. No weight problems. They run and play hard. ride bikes. Are taken to the park where the 6 yr old, granddaughter climbs every tree in sight. They also get meat. The 6 yr old has thalassemia and craves the iron you get from red meat, your body will not absorb through medication as well nor are legumes enough. I remember and will continue to follow the basic food groups, all four. Since your brain works with sugar(glucose), period. It would not surprise me to find a relation to the growing autism and the subtraction of so much sugar in our diet. The purest food on the planet.
Since the first post is by a Republican politician, your pointless point, is also moot. Go to FOX and their well rounded discussions. I pledged to PBS and would rather see the money go there than to a lot of other non-issues like subsidizing rich ranchers and open range cattle/horse grazing. Bet it would pay for a lot of radio.
You're so right, it isn't enough. In my house hold with 4 working adults, my daughters, a son-in-law and 4 grandchildren all live with me since the death of my husband, which I love and the food bill is over $1,000.00 a month. NO fast food, either. this holiday weekend, we will barbecue, have potatoe salad, macaroni salad, tossed salad and a huge, throw everything in but the kitchen sink fruit salad as desert. When my husband's plant moved out in 1980 and with 3 children, the food stamps(actually, then) was about $240.00. THEN, food was so much cheaper. Milk was $.99 a gallon and now it is upwards of $5.00 per. Bread was 2 to 3 loaves for a dollar and today about $2 -$3 a loaf. These are basics, nothing fancy. In the 80's I would spend $60.00 a week and feed my family including a new born. that same new born will be 32 this year with a husband and 4 kids and spends over $300.00 a week on food. It shows why America is 25th in math. For some reason they added .99 + $5.00 and came up with $.49. for milk. Sad!!
Many of the farm subsidies in the past have largely gone to large corporations that control vast acreage. How is this bill going to address the inequity of support for the small family farmer versus these large corporate subsidies?
Diane
Please ask your speaker that is defending the farm bill, if the “low cost food” if there are subsidies going to Monsanto, Cargill and other big agribusinesses, that have these large controlled feeding operations and practices of using genetically modified foods.
These poor quality foods are contributing to our countries poor overall health.
I want a choice!!!!! I do want not want to eat food that I consider poision. I am a tax payer I have a right to choice.
These big companies are being allowed to take away our choices. The are controlling our FDA, UDSA.
Please respond
apparently you have no problem with your tax dollars subsidizing large corporate farms?
Farmers are by nature conservationists and have not been paid to do so. For centuries we have taken care of the ground, water, etc. because that is our livihood. The Farm Bill is not the place to fund taking care of the earth and water; the farmer's already are; the rest of the nation may not be! Another layout of budget money is the Food Stamp Program. That should not be part of the Farm Bil; that is Human Resources, Welfare rolls, etc. The Food Stamp program makes agriculture's budget look bad and the recepients have nothing to do with agriculture other than food consumption that comes to them globally. The crop insurance is making someone rich. We pay subsidized premiums and never collect enough to pay a seed bill, a harvest bill, or a chemical bill, and the list goes on. Bottom line, crop insurance is not working for the farmer that looses a crop to adverse weather, of which he has no control. In Michigan today we are experiencing this issue; comment from the insurance company, "we have to wait and see". Wait and see for what?
There is no crop on the fruit trees and that is pretty darn obvious! The ball needs to get rolling as the bills roll in. Just because there is no crop, the orchards, vineyards, etc. have to be maintained.