ST. LOUIS, MO— Yesterday, USA Rice joined U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins, Missouri Governor Mike Kehoe, and Anheuser-Busch (A-B) leadership here to celebrate A-B’s role in providing both American manufacturing jobs but also supporting American farmers through purchases of raw agricultural commodities for their products.
A-B sources nearly all of the ingredients for their iconic American beers from U.S. farmers and is the largest domestic user of rice, purchasing roughly 18.4 million bushels of rice annually.
USA Rice President & CEO Peter Bachmann shared with Secretary Rollins that, “USA Rice appreciates her commitment to American agriculture and the fact that she has helped to elevate the importance of American farmers within the White House in a way we have never seen before.”
USA Rice members present included Joel Brown, Paul T. Combs, and Tim Martin, all farming rice in the Missouri Bootheel and Bill Jones representing the A-B rice mill in Jonesboro, Arkansas. All three growers and Jones highlighted to Rollins the severity of the economic situation for rice and other row crops and the need for a market shift or some level of additional 2025 assistance if farmers expect to continue farming into next year.
Bachmann added that, “We also appreciate this Administration’s focus on American businesses that buy American products, just like Anheuser-Busch.”
In addition to direct purchases, A-B also invests in agricultural research and supports organizations like The Rice Foundation, Ducks Unlimited, and Farm Rescue. Their contributions to the Rice Stewardship Partnership have helped ensure that hundreds of millions in conservation practice cost-share could be implemented on working rice lands throughout the United States.