Iowa family farmers said the long-overdue Farm Bill under consideration in Washington favors large corporate agricultural interests over independent producers.
Supporters of the measure argued large operations are crucial to the security of the nation’s food supply.
Berleen Wobeter, a family farmer and member of Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement, countered the bill would provide corporate farms with expanded crop insurance and safety net programs at the expense of smaller producers.
Wobeter added the measure takes a scattershot approach to future priorities, making it hard for farmers to plan.
“What do I invest in?” Wobeter asked. “If it’s conservation that you want me to do, cover crops, what kind of equipment do I need? Should I invest in it, or will you change your mind next year on what you’re going to support?”
The last farm bill was passed in 2018 and has been extended multiple times. The House has already passed the new bill, which now awaits action in the Senate.
Wobeter pointed out farmers were facing high production costs and low commodity prices even before recent tariffs, which make the equipment they need to produce crops more expensive. She stressed the bill lacks a coherent plan to change that.
“What is it we want? Do we have a plan?” Wobeter wondered. “Can we articulate what the United States wants for our food system, for our farming system?”
Small farmers want to level the economic playing field through measures such as country-of-origin labeling for beef and increased funding for crop conservation programs.