Next week, House lawmakers will vote on the farm bill, which sets food and farm policy.
The partisan House farm bill proposed by Agriculture Committee Republicans would fail to help family farmers, lock in historic cuts to the nation’s biggest anti-hunger program, cut regenerative agriculture programs, weaken safeguards against pesticides, and roll back animal welfare and other environmental protections.
It would also do nothing to address food prices or food safety or support healthy diets – priority issues – or protect the people who feed us. No wonder groups fighting to support family farms, hungry people, farm and food workers, public health and farm animals are united in their opposition.
The farm bill has not been renewed since 2018 and may not be reconsidered until 2032 or later. The upcoming debate over the bill is a rare opportunity to push for resetting policies that currently mostly benefit the largest, most successful farm businesses and do little or nothing for the rest of us.
A good farm bill would ensure that family farmers are supported and that hungry people have enough to eat, that we invest in regenerative agriculture, protect the people who feed us, and ensure that food is safe, healthy and affordable.
A bad farm bill, like the House Republicans’ plan, would enshrine the status quo.
Here are six reasons members of Congress should reject the bad bill that will be considered next week. The bill:
- Fails to feed hungry people. Last year, the Republican Congress passed the biggest cut ever to anti-hunger programs, but the partisan House farm bill does nothing to help people struggling simply to have enough to eat.
- Fails family farms. More than 100,000 family farms have gone out of business in recent years, and President Donald Trump’s tariffs and wars have made farm inputs more expensive, worsening the problem. But the partisan House farm bill will do nothing to help our family farms, including those owned by young farmers.
- Cuts regenerative agriculture funding. Regenerative agriculture programs help farmers adopt practices like cover crops – popular Agriculture Department programs that are badly oversubscribed. But the partisan House farm bill would cut these programs’ funding for farmers by more than $1 billion.
- Weakens pesticide protections. Pesticides can threaten our health, especially our children’s health. But the partisan House farm bill would repeal local pesticide protections, especially safeguards near schools and parks. It would also grant legal immunity to pesticide companies.
- Weakens animal welfare protections. State laws ensure that farm animals are raised humanely. But the partisan House farm bill would repeal state farm animal welfare laws.
- Does nothing to address food prices or food safety. The partisan House bill takes no action to address food prices and food safety, support healthy diets or protect the people who feed us. It also fails to fund access to healthy food.