As a wheat farmer and constituent, I am reaching out in support of several provisions included in Chairman Thompson’s farm bill proposal.
Farmers play a crucial role in helping sustain our rural communities and feeding the world. Wheat is grown in 42 states across the United States and accounts for approximately 20 percent of the calories consumed worldwide. To help feed families here and abroad, we, as farmers, must overcome challenges related to weather, price volatility, increased input costs, market uncertainty, and other factors. The farm bill plays an integral part in helping mitigate these risks. However, farmers have faced historic challenges in recent years, and the reauthorization of the farm bill in 2024 presents Congress with an opportunity to strengthen the farm safety net, bolster trade, expand conservation practice adoption, and support American farmers and families.
The farm bill that the House Committee on Agriculture is considering on May 23 includes several improvements that would strengthen the farm safety net to be more responsive and predictable. On crop insurance, the proposal not only protects this critical risk management tool, but also provides additional assistance for beginning farmers and enhances certain coverage options for producers. Additionally, the proposal provides meaningful enhancements to the Title I farm safety net programs Agricultural Risk Coverage (ARC) and Price Loss Coverage (PLC) to help protect wheat growers from significant crop price or revenue decline. These improvements would help mitigate some of the substantial risks involved in the industry and help protect them from the serious increases in unavoidable costs that farmers face.
As a wheat grower, I also support investments in the Market Access Program (MAP) and Foreign Market Development (FMD) program and prioritization of U.S. commodities in the Food for Peace program. MAP and FMD are vital in helping grow and diversify agricultural markets around the world, and they have an average return on investment of $24.50 per dollar. Additionally, prioritizing U.S. commodities will restore the Food for Peace program’s original intent to use U.S.-grown commodities to fight global hunger rather than using American taxpayers’ dollars to purchase food from America’s competitors.
The provisions to modernize and streamline the conservation programs are also appreciated. Voluntary conservation programs should be utilized to expand the adoption and maintenance of conservation practices. They should provide a wide range of conservation options for all producers in all climates and all regions of the country.
The farm bill also includes many other important programs for wheat growers, such as research, rural broadband, and credit. As Congress continues its work on the farm bill, I urge you to include these bipartisan policy priorities, work to produce a farm bill that can pass the House and Senate, and give producers certainty about the structure of the safety net moving forward.