“Senate Democrats and the Biden-Harris administration refuse to come to the table to find practical, bipartisan solutions to the many problems our farmers are facing.”
WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senator Tuberville (R-AL) penned an op-ed in Agri-Pulse on the rapidly deteriorating state of the agricultural economy, accelerated by the harmful policies of the Biden-Harris administration. In the piece, Senator Tuberville called for the Senate to get to work on passing a Farm Bill that will give our farmers the help they so desperately need.
Earlier this week, Senator Tuberville spoke on the Senate floor demanding the Biden-Harris administration protect farmers amidst historic inflation. Also, he spoke on the need for Congress to consider supplemental appropriations for the rapidly deteriorating agricultural sector. Considering the dire state of the ag economy, additional funds would not go into producers’ pockets, but would help provide certainty to their cash flows, allowing them to renew farm loans and put a crop in the ground next year.
Read excerpts of the piece below or here.
“America’s farmers and producers are the backbone of our nation’s agricultural economy and food security. Despite their critical role in our lives – to feed, clothe, and fuel not only the United States but the entire world – our farmers are struggling to survive.
The current state of the agricultural economy is bleak. Input costs are rising, commodity prices are falling, and our farmers cannot break even, much less make a profit.
According to the Department of Agriculture, net farm income this year is projected to decline 4.4% from 2023. This follows a shocking 19.5% decline from 2022, which means farm income has seen a drastic 23% decline from just two years ago. These figures represent over $40 billion in lost revenue for America’s hardworking producers, the largest two-year decline ever.
Row croppers are facing the worst financial blow of all farmers, with a $27.7 billion decline in cash receipts since last year, according to the American Farm Bureau Federation.
In Alabama, producers are yielding bumper crops of cotton, peanuts, corn, and soybeans, yet they can’t make a profit due to rising costs of production.
A multitude of factors over which producers have no control are impacting their bottom lines. These include a lack of domestic energy production, skyrocketing inflation, rising costs of labor and the H-2A Adverse Effect Wage Rate (AEWR), and the increased price of feed, fertilizer, and pesticides. Issues plaguing American producers have only been made worse by the harmful policies of the Biden-Harris administration.
America’s agricultural producers are facing a tough road ahead. Many fear that their farm loans may not be renewed, cash flows will dry up, and interest rates on the money they need to borrow to operate farms will continue to rise.”
Senator Tommy Tuberville represents Alabama in the United States Senate and is a member of the Senate Armed Services, Agriculture, Veterans’ Affairs, and HELP Committees.
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