Posted by Dave on 09/25/07 at 09:41:10 am
Categories: Farm Bill

From Bread for the World:

The farm bill principally tries to help U.S. farmers. But over time it has become less and less successful at doing so. The farm bill includes commodity payments, which are cash payments made to farmers growing mostly five crops—corn, wheat, cotton, rice and soybeans. Commodity payments are supposed to protect farmers from low prices by making up the difference between a target price and the actual market price.

In reality, commodity payments are not very effective risk management tools for farmers. Commodity payments have shifted dramatically to the very largest farms, which often are also the wealthiest farmers. Farmers who need payments the least are receiving the most, and two-thirds of U.S. farmers receive no payments.

The portion of the current farm bill devoted specifically to rural development is very small. This is out of balance with the needs of rural America. Some 50 million Americans live in rural communities; only 3 million are farmers. As the main source of federal support for rural America, the farm bill needs to reflect the fact that increasingly the non-farm economy sustains these communities.

In recent years, U.S. farm policy has also become unintentionally devastating for small-holder farmers in the developing world. Because the commodity payment system encourages U.S. farmers to concentrate on the five crops, world markets are being flooded with these crops, which are sold at prices lower than what it costs to produce them.

For example, in spite of their much lower production costs, cotton farmers in countries like Senegal, Burkina Faso, Chad and Mali cannot survive when world prices are so low. U.S. cotton commodity payments are partly to blame. For these African nations, where 10 million people who earn roughly $1 to $2 a day depend directly on cotton, U.S. farm programs shatter hopes of reducing hunger and poverty.

The farm bill is also a primary tool for reducing hunger in the United States. The Food Stamp Program, a major component in the farm bill, is our nation's first line of defense against hunger. When Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast, the Food Stamp Program was a shining example of a federal program that responded in a timely and efficient manner. The Food Stamp Program served an average of 26 million people per month in 2005. It should be strengthened to provide a nutritious and sufficient diet for hungry people.

How to Improve the Farm Bill

The farm bill can be made to serve those who need help most: farmers struggling to get by, rural communities that are now less agriculturally based, and people at risk of hunger. You can speak out for them, and you can ask others to speak out, too.

The existing commodity program predominantly rewards a small number of farmers growing certain crops. At the same time, many farmers receive low prices and depend on these government payments to keep their farms afloat. The existing programs skew the benefits to the largest growers, divert scarce resources from rural development, and undercut farmers in the developing world. The United States needs a broader, more equitable safety net that works better for small and moderate-sized farms. U.S. farmers who want to grow barley, broccoli, pears or pecans, for example, should have the same safety net as those who grow the five program crops the current farm bill now supports. Reforming the existing commodity payment program would also help small-holder farmers in poor countries get a higher price for their own crops and give them a better chance to escape hunger and poverty.

The bill should also promote conservation and improved land use. Strengthened policies can better reward good stewardship of working farms and ranches, and protect environmentally fragile areas such as wetlands.

Rural development programs should seek to bolster economic development. With greater emphasis on this neglected area, the farm bill can help to generate new jobs and strengthen small businesses in rural communities by investing in rural infrastructure (such as better telecommunications systems and broadband Internet access), supporting rural entrepreneurs, and promoting local initiatives to revitalize rural towns.

An increase in funding for the Food Stamp Program could enable the program to reach more people at risk of hunger. Food stamp outreach should also be improved to ensure that more of the eligible people receive the help they need.

A funding increase could also allow families who receive food stamp benefits to afford a more nutritious diet. According to the latest government data, 66 percent of Americans are considered overweight; nearly half of those are obese. Overweight and obesity affect all income groups but are most prevalent in low-income communities. That's because calories are cheap in the United States—it's the nutrients that are expensive. The Food Stamp Program could provide incentives for purchase of fruits and vegetables that would also strengthen local and regional farm-to-market connections.

Emergency food assistance to countries suffering famine and humanitarian crises are also included in the farm bill. The bill should ensure ongoing and consistent U.S. assistance to people in need of emergency food and nutrition support around the world. It should also increase the efficiency of U.S. assistance by allowing some purchase of food in markets outside the United States and some flexibility in the transportation of food aid.

The Power of Seeds

Improving the U.S. farm bill will be an uphill battle indeed. But Bread for the World members know well what any movement that sprouts from a tiny seed can accomplish. Jesus himself assured us this is true: "If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you." (Matthew 17:20)

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