Senate Farm Bill Props Up Toxic Corporate Agriculture
Yields some wins on organic and anti-environmental riders in comparison to House BillWASHINGTON, D.C. – Today the Senate Agriculture Committee released its 2018 Farm Bill. This version comes after the House Farm Bill was released in April. It is expected the Senate version will face mark up by the Agriculture Committee mid-next week.
Lisa Archer, Food and Technology Program Director at Friends of the Earth, issued the following statement in response:
The House of Representatives set an incredibly low bar with its regressive and disastrous Farm Bill. The Senate’s proposed Farm Bill does not include the extreme anti-environment riders on pesticides, endangered species or waterways that were in the House Bill. It does include important wins for organic agriculture, including fending off some of the worst attacks on the authority of the National Organic Standards Board and increasing critical funding for organic programs.
However, the bill still falls far short of creating a sustainable and equitable food and farming system. It would continue to give massive handouts to corporate agriculture and factory farms that pollute our air, water and soil. During a time of growing ecological crisis, it fails to regulate toxic pesticides and adequately expand conservation programs. We urge the Senate Agriculture Committee to reject this legislation that prioritizes corporate profits at the expense of consumers, farmers and the planet.
Expert contact: Kendra Klein, Ph.D., (415) 350-5957, [email protected]
Communications contact: Patrick Davis, (608) 770-4800, [email protected]