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When policy hits our plates: the impacts and opportunities of an expired Farm Bill

By Emily Zimmerman

Combine harvesting a fieldDuring the past month, millions of Americans disappointedly watched as our government failed to pass a spending plan for our Nation.  As a result, over 800,000 Americans were placed on immediate and indefinite furlough without pay.  Critical departments such as the Department of Energy and the Department of Health and Human Services furloughed over half of their employees.  Other departments, such as the Department of the Interior, and programs, such as the National Science Foundation, were slashed more severely and rendered fundamentally ineffective.  Thankfully, after 16 days, a spending plan was approved and the government re-opened. 

However, not all important legislative bills were as lucky as the government spending plan.  Largely out-shadowed by the government shutdown, another important piece of legislation quietly expired on September 30th: the Farm Bill.  The Farm Bill, properly known as the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008, is the primary piece of legislation that guides our Nation with respect to our agriculture and food system.  Composed of 13 different Titles, each of which pertains to a major issue in the agriculture and food system, the Farm Bill governs many of the fundamental economic, ecological, and social programs that are vital to our agriculture and food system.  For example, Title II refers to conservation such as the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), which encourages and incentivizes practices that maintain the ecological integrity of our agriculture and food system.  Passed approximately every five years, the Farm Bill has critical implications with respect to how and what ends up on the plates and in the stomachs of Americans. 

But now, the Farm Bill has expired, and the effects of its expiration will likely begin to be felt on our plates.  According to the Farm Service Agency, here are just a few impacts that Americans can expect within the coming months if a new Farm Bill is not passed:

  • Due to legislative technicalities, the legislation governing our agriculture and food system now reverts to a permanent law passed in 1949; a period with markedly different economics, natural resources, and social constructs than 2013.  The 1949 Farm Bill provides little accounting for the few commodities that dominate our markets today, and could result in highly unstable, unsupported markets.  These unstable markets could have deep financial impacts for consumers. 
  • In addition to the increased instability in commodity markets, such as corn, caused by the reliance on 1949 legislation, critical conservation programs are no longer able to enroll new fields.  According to the Environmental Working Group (EWG), the loss of these important conservation programs couldn’t come at a more critical time; with increasing crop prices over 23 million acres of land have been plowed by between 2007 and 2011 alone.  As a result, markets will likely become increasingly unpredictable – a scenario only exacerbated by the permanent 1949 legislation. 
  • According to the United States Department of Agriculture, the Milk Income Loss Contract (MILC) is designed to compensate dairy producers when milk prices fall below a given amount, traditionally the cost of production.  Without a Farm Bill, the government will return to providing price supports based on the cost of milk production in the 1940s.  As a result, the consumer will be required to pay for the difference between the costs, meaning milk prices may nearly double.

While the expiration of the Farm Bill is a picture often painted in gloomy tones and angry hues, there are unique opportunities to make substantial changes and to approach the creation of a new Farm Bill with innovative and progressive policies – policies that could truly begin to bring economic, ecological, and social sustainability to the plates and stomachs of Americans. So what can we do to ensure that the next Farm Bill is not only passed quickly, but also with a greater emphasis on economic, ecological, and social sustainability in our agriculture and food system?  Here are a few simple things:

  • Write or call your legislators.  As author Wendell Berry said, “Eating is an agricultural act.”  As a consumer in in the agriculture and food system, your voice deserves to be heard. Contact your legislator, and express your concern over the delay in passing a farm bill.  In addition, remind your legislator of the increasing need to approach our agriculture and food system in a way that is economically, ecologically, and socially sustainable in a long-term, meaningful way.
  • Support a diverse food system.  Use your purchasing power to signal your expectations for the future of our agriculture and food system.  By purchasing a diverse suite of fruits and vegetables, produced by farmers that you have confidence in, you are signaling your desire for a more balanced agricultural system that places high value not only on economic sustainability, but also on ecological and social sustainability. 

Together, we can choose a future an agriculture and food system that not only provides healthful foods, but does so in a way that facilitates economic, ecological, and social sustainability.