By Scout Nelson
North Dakota Farmers Union called on Congress to move forward with the farm bill after the U.S. Senate Agriculture Committee failed to pass a farm bill.
“Family farmers and ranchers have been advocating to get a farm bill done for three years now. Over that time, economic conditions have worsened, input costs have gone up, and commodity demand has become increasingly uncertain,” said North Dakota Farmers Union President Matt Perdue. “Despite those deepening challenges, farm policy continues to be mired in partisan gridlock.”
Perdue said the draft of the Senate farm bill addresses key priorities for North Dakota family farmers and ranchers. “It authorizes year-round E15 and takes important steps toward addressing the corporate consolidation that is driving up input costs,” he said. “Thanks to a bipartisan amendment, the bill also restores mandatory country-of-origin labeling for beef.”
The draft legislation also included steps to address corporate consolidation. Farmers and ranchers had raised concerns that growing consolidation in the agricultural industry was contributing to higher input costs and creating challenges for producers.
Another key provision came through a bipartisan amendment that restored mandatory country-of-origin labeling for beef. The measure would give consumers information about where beef was produced.
“We appreciate all the work that has gone into this bill. But the plain reality is farm bills don’t pass the U.S. Senate without bipartisan support,” Perdue said. “We urge the Senate Agriculture Committee to find common ground on programs that support our hungry neighbors. The stakes are too high to walk away now.”
Categories: North Dakota, Government & Policy