What does Congress have against family farmers and ranchers? The $1.1 trillion spending bill passed earlier this month included the full version of the Grain Inspection, Packers & Stockyards Administration (GIPSA) rider passed earlier by the House of Representatives.
There are not enough ways to describe how bad this hidden policy package truly is.It limits the ability of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to protect farmers’ and ranchers’ basic rights, such as their freedom of speech and freedom of association.
The Packers and Stockyards Act, passed in 1921, was written to protect farmers and ranchers from discriminatory, deceptive and abusive practices when they sell livestock and poultry to meatpacking corporations.
Congress abandoned those principles when they passed the FY 2015 federal spending bill. They abandoned USDA’s effort to provide smaller volume livestock producers a more competitive livestock market and greater fairness for farmers and ranchers. The 2008 Farm Bill required Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack to write regulation, under the Packers and Stockyards Act, to prohibit undue and discriminatory preferences given to large, industrial livestock operations and to provide basic protections to farmers and ranchers who do business with meat-packing corporations.
Secretary Vilsack proposed the best and most comprehensive livestock market reforms since the passage of the Packers and Stockyards Act.
Unfortunately, Congress has repeatedly undercut his efforts. Family farmers and ranchers, need and deserve access to competitive livestock markets that reward them fairly for their work.
That’s something Congress must figure out, soon.
Written by John Crabtree for the Center for Rural Affairs. Established in 1973, the center is a private, non-profit organization working to strengthen small businesses, family farms and ranches, and rural communities through action-oriented programs addressing social, economic, and environmental issues. Contact Crabtree at 402.687.2103, Ext. 1010, or via email to johnc@cfra.org. Find more information about the center at cfra.org.
