Pork Industry Representatives Lobby for New Farm Bill This Year

Pork producers from seven state pork associations participated in an NPPC mini legislative fly-in Wednesday in Washington, DC, lobbying lawmakers on several issues important to the U.S. pork industry.

During visits with their members of Congress, the pork producers and state executives asked them to:

• Pass a Farm Bill that includes a legislative fix to California Proposition 12, which bans the sale in the state of pork from hogs born to sows raised anywhere in housing that does not meet California’s arbitrary standards.

• Renew and expand key Farm Bill programs that benefit U.S. agriculture, including ones that address foreign animal diseases and promote U.S. agricultural exports.

• Support the “Beagle Brigade Act” to provide congressional authority to USDA’s National Detector Dog Training Center, which trains canines used at U.S. ports of entry to detect agricultural contraband.

• Reauthorize and increase funding for the federal Feral Swine Eradication Program.

Pork producers and state executives from Colorado, Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio and Wisconsin also met with staff from Senate Agriculture, Nutrition, & Forestry Committee Chairwoman Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) and Ranking Member John Boozman (R-AR) to discuss getting a new Farm Bill approved this year.

The fly-in complements recent pork industry Farm Bill efforts, including a letter sent Monday from NPPC and more than 500 other agricultural organizations urging U.S. Senate and House leaders to pass a new Farm Bill this year. The groups warned that “it may not be logistically or politically feasible to advance a new farm bill early in the next Congress” because of the legislative and administrative duties of the 119th Congress, such as picking leaders and committee members, considering administration nominations, and other necessary actions.

The current Farm Bill expires Oct. 1, and many of its programs would cease at that time without a new bill or extension of the existing statute. So far, the only significant action on the next Farm Bill came in late May when the House Agriculture Committee approved a measure that includes several provisions supported by NPPC, including a legislative fix to California’s Proposition 12. That Farm Bill, however, still must be passed by the entire House, and in the Senate, although the Agriculture, Nutrition, & Forestry Committee has a draft 2024 Farm Bill, the panel has yet to consider it.

Why it Matters
The five-year Farm Bill sets farm, conservation, forestry and nutrition policy and authorizes various agricultural programs, including ones related to foreign animal disease preparation and prevention and export promotion.