Specialty Crop Farm Bill Recommendations Pt 2
From the Ag Information Network, I’m Bob Larson. Farm Bill recommendations have been sent to Congressional Ag Committees by the Specialty Crop Farm Bill Alliance, representing over 200 specialty crop groups.
Kam Quarles, National Potato Council CEO and Alliance Co-Chair, says meeting everyone’s needs will not be a simple task …
QUARLES … “How you deliver healthy product to Americans through these programs, recognizing that resources are not unlimited, is going to be one of the huge challenges that both the House and Senate Agriculture Committees and, kind of, the House and Senate in general, are going to have to grapple with in writing a new bill.”
Fortunately, the Farm Bill is “usually” a bipartisan effort …
QUARLES … “When you look at some of the challenges that they have in the House and the Senate, doing anything on a partisan basis, it tells you that bipartisanship is the way to go. That’s how you put the math together to move any type of legislation. You’re absolutely right. The farm bill has been one of those in the past and we want to make sure it stays that way.”
Quarles says they’re very excited about these recommendations …
QUARLES … “They were the product of a lot of work and we think they’re going to create a great foundation for this fantastic fruit and vegetable industry to be able to thrive for the next half a decade at least, and hopefully much longer than that.”
Quarles says the big message is they hope the Farm Bill reflects the true value of the specialty crop industry.
