[While the farm bill may seem too dense to digest, its contents
underpin the functioning of the American food and agriculture system,
which directly impacts how and what we eat. ]
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PORTSIDE CULTURE

DEMYSTIFYING THE US FARM BILL  
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Miranda Lipton
April 7, 2023
Modern Farmer
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_ While the farm bill may seem too dense to digest, its contents
underpin the functioning of the American food and agriculture system,
which directly impacts how and what we eat. _

The most recent farm bill, passed in 2018, is set to expire on
September 30. , Photography by Shutterstock.

 

It’s big, it’s complicated and a new version is being negotiated
this year. Here’s what to know about how the farm bill works. 

How our food is grown, who has access to it and at what cost are among
the leading issues negotiated in the writing of the farm bill, a
comprehensive federal law that governs agricultural and food-related
policy in the United States.

While the farm bill may seem too dense to digest, its contents
underpin the functioning of the American food and agriculture system,
which directly impacts how and what we eat. And now is the time to pay
attention: The most recent bill, passed in 2018, is set to expire on
September 30. 

Before that happens, there will be a host of hearings, negotiations
and debate over the new farm bill. Here’s what to know about the ins
and outs of the bill and what we know so far about how this year’s
bill may come together.

History and evolution of the farm bill

The farm bill has been passed by Congress about once every five years
since it was originally created in the 1930s as part of the New Deal
legislation. The initial goals behind the bill were to maintain fair
food prices for farmers and consumers, help maintain a sufficient food
supply and protect natural resources across the US. 

The bill began as a farm commodity support program, serving producers
of commodity crops such as corn, wheat, soybeans, rice, dairy,
peanuts, cotton and sugar. It has since grown to fund agricultural
subsidies, food assistance programs for low-income people, research
grants, conservation projects and other agricultural policies.

The bill has lasting implications for consumers and farmers across the
country. And as the public becomes more aware of the environmental
issues and climate impacts surrounding industrial agriculture, the
upcoming farm bill’s designation of public funding will play a
critical role in shaping our environment for the next five years and
beyond.

BUDGET AND NEGOTIATIONS

The 2018 farm bill cost about $428 billion over the five years of the
bill’s life, according to the estimates from the Congressional
Budget Office [[link removed]]. The 2023 farm
bill is estimated to cost $709 billion over the next five years.
Members of Congress who sit on the Senate and House Committees on
Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry are the primary writers of the
bill. 

This year’s negotiations have kicked off with Congress soliciting
stakeholder input and setting its priorities for the bill, after which
the House and Senate Agriculture committees will each draft, amend and
vote on their own versions on the bill. The bills are then synthesized
and voted on in final form, although it has at times taken years for
lawmakers to reach agreement on past farm bills.

When the bill is passed, it will be sent to the president to sign
before the USDA puts it into action.

WHERE DOES MOST OF THE FUNDING GO?

The 2018 bill’s four major groups of entitlement programs
(government programs that guarantee certain benefits to a particular
group or segment of the population) were subsidies for commodity
farmers, crop insurance, conservation programs and nutrition.
Three-fourths of overall funding
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was allocated to nutrition programs such as SNAP, the Supplemental
Nutrition Assistance Program, which goes to supplement food budgets of
low-income families to broaden access to healthy food.

The commodities funding offers income and price support to farmers and
includes agricultural disaster assistance. Crop insurance
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subsidies to farmers and private crop insurance companies. Most crop
subsidies go to the “big three”—corn, soybean and wheat
farmers—which have historically received more than 70 percent of
farm subsidies
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A large portion of these crops are ending up as biofuel or animal feed
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meaning that the farmers growing the food we eat aren’t getting
access to nearly as many subsidies.

WHAT DO WE ALREADY KNOW ABOUT THE 2023 BILL?

As SNAP funding consumes the vast majority of the farm bill budget,
this is where the most debate may take place, with Democrats likely to
advocate for more aid and Republicans likely to push for a reduction
in spending and increased restrictions on SNAP programs.

Other key points of negotiation on this year’s agenda will likely
include crop insurance, rural development, research grants and
conservation programs. Expanding crop insurance for smaller, organic
and regenerative farms would be a pivotal change as these are often
the farms most vulnerable
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to natural or economic disasters.

Rallies have already begun
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with activist groups such as National Sustainable Agriculture
Coalition (NSAC) and the HEAL Food Alliance advocating for the safety
of food supply chain workers, equitable access to farmland and
climate-resilient farming practices. As the temporary boost to SNAP
benefits throughout the COVID-19 pandemic expired in February, the
re-negotiations of these funds will be a prominent conversation as the
bill is being written. 

The use of fertilizer may also be a chief issue as transitioning from
farming methods that use less fertilizer is pertinent to both
environmental concerns and the costliness of extensive fertilizer use,
especially as fertilizer prices surged 80 percent
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year.

Writing a bill that makes our food and agriculture systems more
sustainable and accessible, while still appeasing the interests of big
ag, a veritable influencer in the writing of this bill, is a fine
line. The issue of fertilizer is unique in that reducing fertilizer
use through more traditional and organic agricultural practices can
benefit both sides of the table.

HOW MIGHT THIS IMPACT THE CLIMATE?

A major source of emissions in agriculture stems from concentrated
animal feeding operations (CAFOs), which make up 7% of total
agricultural greenhouse gas emissions
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the US. Many of these industrial livestock facilities are built on
practices that use fertilizers, pesticides and large amounts of fossil
fuels and produce massive quantities of greenhouse gasses from animal
waste.

The Inflation Reduction Act, signed into law in August, removed the
requirement for the Environmental Quality Incentives Program, a USDA
conservation program, to include CAFO funding in its overall
agricultural investments. It also added a $20-billion investment in
climate-friendly agriculture, which amounted to the greatest
investment in agricultural conservation since the aftermath of the
Dust Bowl in the 1930s. 

The 2023 farm bill can build off this momentum by helping producers
transition out of the CAFO method of farming and investing resources
into smaller-scale farms that use regenerative, organic means of
production. The available funding could make organic farming and
ranching possible for businesses across the US that may never have
otherwise had the financial capabilities to make the switch.

There is also a push from environmental organizations to increase
funding for existing conservation programs
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by the USDA, such as the Conservation Reserve Program, Emergency
Conservation Program, and Source Water Protection Program. 

Farm Bill negotiations have just begun to go public in House hearings
in the past month and will continue throughout the upcoming months
until at least September. 

Have something to say about the future of the farm bill? The US senate
committee on Agriculture, Nutrition & Forestry invites ideas and
proposals for the 2023 bill; submissions may be sent to
[email protected], or submitted via this form
[[link removed]].

_Is there a particular issue raised by the new farm bill negotiations
that you want to know more about? Let us know in the comments, and we
may use your question as the basis for further reporting._

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* Farm Bill
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* SNAP
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* USDA
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