Farm groups seek ‘broad land-grant coalition’ to teach farmers about farm bill programs
May 07, 2014 | 05:04 PM
A coalition of farm groups today wrote Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack urging him to make sure that a “broad” coalition from all parts of the country are included when USDA awards funds to land-grant universities for the development of websites and Web-based tools to assist producers in deciding which of the new law’s programs to sign up for.
The American Soybean Association said in a news release that the letter was sent following Vilsack’s testimony on implementation of the farm bill before the Senate Agriculture Committee today.
At the hearing, Senate Agriculture Chairwoman Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., also told Vilsack that the committee wants a broad range of land-grant schools involved in the farmer education process.
The news release said the awards are expected to be announced on May 22, and that the tools the universities are to develop are expected to be available for farmers’ use by late summer.
“Given the complexity of choices in the commodity and crop insurance titles of the farm bill, these tools will be critical for producers in our organizations to make well-informed decisions,” wrote the groups in the letter.
“It is important that academic institutions representing different regional views on farm programs participate in this work,” the letter said.
The letter was signed by the American Farm Bureau Federation, American Soybean Association, National Association of Wheat Growers, National Barley Growers Association, National Corn Growers Association, National Sunflower Association and U.S. Canola Association.
▪ Letter to Secretary Vilsack
The American Soybean Association said in a news release that the letter was sent following Vilsack’s testimony on implementation of the farm bill before the Senate Agriculture Committee today.
At the hearing, Senate Agriculture Chairwoman Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., also told Vilsack that the committee wants a broad range of land-grant schools involved in the farmer education process.
The news release said the awards are expected to be announced on May 22, and that the tools the universities are to develop are expected to be available for farmers’ use by late summer.
“Given the complexity of choices in the commodity and crop insurance titles of the farm bill, these tools will be critical for producers in our organizations to make well-informed decisions,” wrote the groups in the letter.
“It is important that academic institutions representing different regional views on farm programs participate in this work,” the letter said.
The letter was signed by the American Farm Bureau Federation, American Soybean Association, National Association of Wheat Growers, National Barley Growers Association, National Corn Growers Association, National Sunflower Association and U.S. Canola Association.
▪ Letter to Secretary Vilsack
