Senate Passes Status Quo Farm Bill

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Senate passed its 2018 Farm Bill tonight by a vote of 86 to 11.

Lisa Archer, Food and Agriculture Program Director at Friends of the Earth, issued the following statement in response:

While the Senate’s Farm Bill does not include the extreme anti-environment riders and cruel cuts to nutrition programs from the House Bill, it continues to prop up destructive industrial agriculture.

At a time of ecological crisis, this Farm Bill will perpetuate climate chaos and biodiversity collapse and further degrade our soil, water and air. It also bolsters toxic, pesticide-intensive monocultures and polluting factory farms. The Senate’s Farm Bill wastes a critical window of opportunity to help make our food system more resilient, regenerative, healthy and just.

We applaud the Senators who secured progress in the bill, including support for pollinators, conservation programs, and local and organic agriculture. We urge our elected leaders in both chambers to push for provisions like these, and fight for a Farm Bill that will move us toward a sustainable and equitable food future.

Communications contact: Erin Jensen, (202) 222-0722, [email protected]