ISSUE

The Farm Bill is up for renewal in 2007, Farm Bills have been in place for 3/4 of a century and are renewed every 5 years.

PLACE IN FOOD CYCLE

The Farm Bill is a multi-faceted set of policy tools which affects all parts of the food production cycle. It affects farmer's decisions about what and how much of a particular crop to grow. It affects the financial position of the farmer, and provides financial and educational resources to farmers. The Farm Bill also affects the price of commodities, which are purchased by processors. This then affects the price paid by the rest of the actors in the food cycle.

POLICY

2007 Farm Bill - Overall

POLICY TOOL

The various iterations of the omnibus Farm Bill over the last three quarter’s century have employed various policy tools, including:

• Direct Government: Direct Subsidies, other programs, price supports for farmers that grow commodity crops like corn, wheat, cotton, rise, sorghum, oats and barley and soybeans. Also provides domestic food assistance (e.g. food stamps)
• Public Information: Outreach, education, training programs, technical assistance, labeling
• Grants: US Govt. is single largest source of public agricultural research funding
• Loans, Insurance

SCALE

The scale of the impacts of the Farm Bill ranges from global to local. The price supports and subsidies can lead to retaliatory tariffs and can influence the ability of small farmers in other countries to compete on the global market.

Nationally, the Farm Bill influences food safety, cost and availability, and contributes to agricultural research for the benefit of U.S. citizens and the world.

Locally, the farm bill affects farmers, and thus local economies. In 1999, the largest 7% of farms received 45% of all government subsidy payments. The 75% of farms classified as small received only 14% of the subsidies.

ACTORS

Given the wide-scale impacts and policy tools involved in the Farm Bill, many actors are involved, and strange alliances have been formed. Generally speaking, the voice of small farmers is soft compared to that of agribusiness.

• U.S. Government, politicians from agricultural states
• Environmentalists, consumers, health advocates
• Farmers and ranchers of various size operations
• Agricultural exporters, producers, distributors, investors
• Fertilizer, pesticide, farm equipment producers
• Farm-dependent rural communities
• Economists
• Taxpayers
• Fiscally conservative groups

PROBLEMS ADDRESSED

The Farm Bill was originally put in place as part of the New Deal with the goal of protecting farmers from risks inherent in farming, which include large scale price fluctuations caused by markets and crop fluctuations caused by weather. The bill evolved to include dollars for research on disease prevention, food borne illness prevention, resource conservation and environmental protection. Other goals of the bill include ensuring that the U.S. has safe, secure and affordable food, reducing reliance on non-renewable energy, providing more opportunities and support for new and beginning farmers, increasing global competitiveness, protecting the environment and enhancing rural communities.

POLICY GOALS IMPLICATED

The overall policy goal of the Farm Bill has been security. The bill has remained essentially unchanged in the last three quarter’s century. In recent years the policy tools used to meet these goals have been called into question, and analysis is required to determine if the original problems still exist and if the policy tools used are still appropriate.

Questions about global equity have also arisen as price supports and subsidies affect the ability of farmers in other countries to compete in the global economy. There are also equity issues between small and large farmers.

Efficiency has been a policy goal implicated as well. Researchers continue to look into the best way to produce the most food with the least inputs.

TOOL CHARACTERISTICS

Direct and visible in the budget. Very visible to the parties involved. 52 public forums were held to gather input for the 2007 Farm Bill.

EXTENT POLICY SUPPORTS/HINDERS

The Farm Bills of the past primarily provided benefits to large-scale farming operations producing commodity crops. Small farmers did not receive much in the way of financial benefits from the bill, although the research and outreach may have been beneficial.

The price supports and subsidies in past bills have distorted the market and negatively impacted the ability of farmers in other countries to compete. However, the new bill will likely reduce or remove these subsidies, especially in light of the WTO restrictions.

Despite some potentially negative impacts of the bill on small farmers, the last farm bill did address sustainability issues included the Farmers' Market Nutrition Programs and Community Food Security Grants, and included funds for on-farm renewable energy systems, and a specialty crop purchasing program for school lunches and service institutions.

The 2007 Farm Bill is the process of being developed. Judging from the online commentary and public feedback, it seems that the issues that local and small farmers care about are gaining visibility. The commentary also suggests that there is awareness that the changing global economy, the financial position of farmers, and new technological advances necessitates changes in policy. There are recommendations that would assist new and young farmers with programs such as increasing loan limits, flexible repayment schedules, providing research, outreach and education to farmers in transition, and enhancing benefits of USDA risk management programs.

Overall, while the farm bills of the past may have done nothing to specifically help small farmers, and may have hurt them, it seems that there is potential for the 2007 Farm Bill to actually help them.

ADDITIONAL LINKS

Farm Bill Web Site - Theme Papers discussing in user-friendly language the key issues for that theme, as well as other information on past farm bills and prep work for the 2007 bill.

This USDA site provides an overview of key issues that will inform the 2007 Farm Bill.

The FarmBill2007 blogbrings together some information on the topic.

An article on farm subsidies in relation to free trade arguments.

Midwest Sustainable Agriculture Working Group website with info on the 2007 Farm Bill:

An article on Sustainable Ag in the 2007 Farm Bill from the UC-Davis Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program.

U.S. Food Policy - A blog on the U.S. food policy and economics from a public interest perspective.

The Farm Bill Debate - A report from Minnesota Public Radio.

FarmPolicy.com - A blog summarizing farm policy news.

Farm Policy Facts - A summary of farm policy news from American Agri-Women, American Sugar Alliance, Minnesota Corn Growers Associations, National Association of Wheat Growers, National Cotton Council, National Milk Producers Federation, National Sorghum Producers, and USA Rice Federation.

OxFam America's take on the 2007 Farm Bill.

The Nebraska Center for Rural Affairs' take on the 2007 Farm Bill.