National Grain and Feed group wants CRP rule changed

Farm and Ranch October 12, 2010 The National Grain and Feed Association is urging the USDA to amend is interim final rules on the Conservation Reserve Program to prevent what it says is idling of excessive amounts of farmland. The Association’s Vice President of Government Relations, Randy Gordon, says the concern is the agency doesn’t plan to count land enrolled under continuous CRP when figuring the 25-percent acreage cap in individual counties.

Gordon: “So our basic concern is that in some counties where they are already at that 25-percent cap or even a little over it, this would potentially create an avenue for some additional acres to into the CRP, which might hurt that local economy and certainly the opportunity for young farmers and tenant farmers to get into the business.”

Gordon says USDA’s rationale is continuous CRP only includes the most environmentally fragile lands, but National Grain and Feed doesn’t think that is acceptable.

Gordon: “Right now their position is that the only criteria they would use to exceed that 25-percent limit would be just the permission of the county government. We don‘t think that is an adequate safeguard.”

Gordon says their official comments to USDA also state this policy is counterproductive in creating rural jobs and economic opportunities.

I’m Bob Hoff and that’s the Northwest Farm and Ranch Report on Northwest Aginfo Net.

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