USA Rice Participates in 2023 Ag & Food Policy Summit

WASHINGTON, DC – Producers and ranchers, their representatives, policy makers, food companies, environmental groups, and ag media gathered at the National Press Club here yesterday to share insights and perspectives as the 2023 Farm Bill season is well underway.

Throughout the day participants heard from “The Four Corners of Ag Policy,” House Agriculture Committee Chair GT Thompson and Ranking Member David Scott, and Senate Agriculture Committee Chair Debbie Stabenow and Ranking Member John Boozman.  All reiterated their commitment to each other and the process of getting a Farm Bill done on time.

Panels covered the partnerships between food assistance organizations, food companies, and farmers; the intersection of climate, conservation, and crop insurance policies; the future of food as medicine; and the staggering economics of the Farm Bill.

The day began with a focus on the future of ag and food policy with young farmers, including Christi Bland-Miller, a Mississippi rice farmer and member of the newest class of the Rice Leadership Development Program.

“I enjoyed the diversity of the young grower panel with row crops, specialty crops, and cattle all represented,” said Bland-Miller. “And being here today with everyone sharing their policy priorities for the Farm Bill is important.”

Bland-Miller, who is also an officer in the National Black Growers Council (NBGC), added that while talk of strengthening and improving crop insurance and conservation practices is everywhere, from her perspective, that means something quite specific.

"When it comes to historically underserved farmers, conservation improvements on their farms will allow for improved crop insurance guarantees,” she said.  “That will result in a stronger safety net for those producers who do not historically have the same levels of coverage.”

An afternoon panel took a deep dive into the future of ag research, something seen as vital as we look to feed more people than ever before amidst a growing climate crisis.

The keynote address was delivered by U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack who reminded attendees that a lot of the policy issues at the center of ag and food policy being debated today may have changed in scope, but have not changed in principle since the founding of the USDA in 1862.

Vilsack discussed the sobering statistic that while the U.S. has seen record farm income levels, as many as 50 percent of farms lost money and 40 percent must derive non-farm income to stay afloat, a fact he also shared with USA Rice members at the Farmer Fly-in earlier this month.

Vilsack was positive about the prospects for American agriculture, saying he sees great opportunities ahead for the sector, from the strengthening of local and regional food systems and value adds for Climate-Smart commodities to a future that could deliver biofuels for aircraft – a more than 50 billion gallon annual market.

The Secretary took questions from the audience, including one about the difficulty U.S. producers are having competing against trade cheats such as India. He remarked that India is seeking the reinstatement of their status under the General System of Preferences (GSP) program which he thinks they should not get unless they make changes to their trade policies, though this likely would take the form of access to the Indian market for American goods rather than India’s unfettered and illegal access to U.S. markets.