| Title XI: Crop Insurance | |||
Title X: Horticulture
What it does: A small title — CBO-projected outlays for 2019-2023 totaled $1 billion, or less than 0.5% of total projected farm bill spending — it is nonetheless significant, dealing with fruit, vegetable, tree nut and nursery crops, as well as hemp production, which was legalized in the 2018 bill. It also covers organic farming and certification.
What it costs: $2.1 billion of the projected 10-year cost of farm bill programs through 2033.
What’s in play: Persistent labor shortages have put a focus on automation and mechanization research that could help create long-term solutions. To that end, House lawmakers have introduced a bill that would set up a program at USDA focused on technology.
The Specialty Crop Farm Bill Alliance noted that 17 of the 20 most popular fruits and vegetables still require hand harvesting, which results in higher grower production costs and higher prices for consumers. “In addition, domestic labor is increasingly limited due to an aging workforce.”
The alliance called for a funding increase in the Specialty Crop Block Grant program, from the current level of $85 million per year to $100 million. In addition, the Organic Trade Association is asking for a 10% annual increase in the current $24 million funding level for the National Organic Program.
OTA also would like to see an update to the Organic Foods Production Act to set up a “preplanned, predictable timeline (no less than once every five years) to review and update the organic standards to meet consumer expectations in the evolving marketplace.”
Notable marker bills
S.1582 — The Opportunities in Organic Act was introduced in the Senate by Sen. Peter Welch, D-Vt., and in the House by Reps. Jimmy Panetta, D-Calif., and Alma Adams, D-N.C. It would authorize USDA to make cost-share payments for organic certification up to $1,500 or more.
H.R.4173 — Introduced by Rep. Doug LaMalfa, R-Calif., and three other lawmakers, the bill would require development of a specialty crop mechanization and automation initiative.
H.R.2723 and S.1205 - The Local Farms and Food Act, led by Rep. Chellie Pingree, D-Maine, and Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, to expand access to the Local Agriculture Market Program, Gus Schumacher Nutrition Incentive Program (GusNIP), and the Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Program.
H.R.679 — From Rep. Kim Schrier, D-Wash., the bill would authorize USDA to waive the matching funds requirement for grants under the National Institute of Food and Agriculture’s Specialty Crop Research Initiative. The bill has 24 co-sponsors.
S.980, H.R.3755 — The Industrial Hemp Act, introduced by Sens. Jon Tester, D-Mont., and Mike Braun, R-Ind., and Reps. Matt Rosendale, R-Mont., and Chrissy Houlahan, D-Pa., the bill would, say the senators, “exempt farmers exclusively growing industrial hemp from the burdensome background checks and costly sampling and testing protocols required for farmers growing cannabinoid hemp."
