Emergency Aid for Specialty Crops
From the Ag Information Network, I’m Bob Larson and this is today’s Fruit Grower Report. We have all seen a number of recent news articles reporting that Congress is preparing an economic relief package for soybean growers related to their challenges in accessing their major export market of China.
But Kam Quarles, CEO at the National Potato Council, as well as co-chair on the Specialty Crop Farm Bill Alliance, says let’s not forget the other struggling crops …
QUARLES … “What we, and it’s not just specialty crops, it’s really across U.S. agriculture, are saying to the administration as well as Capital Hill is, we have no argument with helping our soybean colleagues, but the problem is much broader than that.”
Quarles says the costs involved for growing any crop these days is beyond affordable most farmers …
QUARLES … “The economic environment that family farms across the United States find themselves in is very challenging right now. And the administration, as well as Congress, need to fully understand the breadth of those problems and develop a meaningful relief package which will get aid out to those family farms and ultimately keep them in business.”
The end goal, Quarles says is the same, but the path to get there is much different …
QUARLES … “Specialty crops, incredibly diverse, and the answers to their challenges will look much different than some of our program crop colleagues.”
Quarles says from input costs to trade disputes, to finding available labor, and more, the challenges are hitting all U.S. crops.
