Nearly 60 state and national farm groups are asking for Congress to pass immediate economic support for both row crop and specialty crop farmers.
Kam Quarles is the CEO of the National Potato Council and co-chair of the Specialty Crop Farm Bill Alliance.
“We’re hearing very positive things that what we are recommending is included in, obviously, a much larger package intended to cover the breadth of all of these U.S. producers,” he shares.
He tells Brownfield leaders in both the appropriations committees in the U.S. House and Senate, as well as the agriculture committees, understand there’s a need to provide additional assistance.
“Whatever bill averts another potential government shutdown, very likely they’re going to attempt to attach this to that package, and we would strongly support that,” he says.
Ranking Member of the U.S. House Agriculture Committee and Minnesota Democrat Angie Craig has introduced the Farm and Family Relief Act, which calls for $29 billion in farm relief.
Quarles says the specialty crop industry is advocating for $5 billion to be distributed through the Marketing Assistance for Specialty Crops Program developed during the first Trump administration as part of pandemic assistance.
Ranking Member of the Senate Agriculture Committee Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota and fellow Democratic committee members are also urging Secretary Brooke Rollins to expedite and increase disaster and economic assistance program support this year.
