The House Agriculture Subcommittee on Commodities yesterday took a big step toward writing the same old farm bill. The upshot of their mark-up was an extension of the 2002 legislation. While several members made reference to the pressure mounting for change outside the Committee, the outcome shows that they’re not in touch with thousands of Americans who think we can do better than extension.
Bread for the World, along with other religious groups representing millions of Christians, are calling for broad reform of the farm bill because it’s a matter of justice.
It’s time for our farm policy to catch up with today’s realities: small-scale farmers who close shop because they can’t compete with recipients of excessive government payments; declining rural communities that haven’t depended on a farming economy for decades; millions of Americans that can’t feed their families; farmers in poor countries who can’t earn their way out of poverty because they can’t compete with the artificially low prices of U.S. crops.
Now is the time for Congress to come up with an alternative to the current commodity payment system. It won’t be easy, but it’s got to be done.