While much of the country was paying attention to a potential government shutdown, they might have missed Congress’ failure to pass another critical piece of legislation—the farm bill.
For a law that’s been around since the 1930s, the farm bill is incredibly nimble and modern. That’s because Congress is supposed to update it every five years. The last few farm bills have helped farmers be as productive as possible while also protecting our natural resources, expanded access to newer energy markets, and facilitated growth of the biobased products market.
These programs are critically important in efforts to address pressing challenges and priorities like climate change and hunger. It was reported that September 2023 was the warmest September on record globally, beating the previous record set in September 2020. At the same time, the U.N. World Food Programme has said that 345 million people face acute levels of food insecurity in 2023. That’s more than double the number in 2020, and climate change is partly to blame – along with war, economic shocks and high fertilizer costs.
Thankfully, biotech can help.
One way to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and protect our climate is by getting more of the energy we use from above the ground instead of beneath it. The biotech company LanzaTech genetically engineers microbes to convert carbon dioxide into ethanol – producing a lower-emissions fuel and other industrial materials compared to petroleum-based products, while removing CO2 from the atmosphere. LanzaTech’s spinoff, LanzaJet, is using that same technology to produce sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) to decarbonize air travel.
Passing the farm bill would advance the transition to sustainable biofuels and biobased products through the Biorefinery Incentives program to help build or retrofit production facilities. As demand grows for sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and other green fuels, we need to scale up production, which requires Congress to increase the program’s funding and include SAF as an advanced biofuel.
There remain untapped opportunities to develop value from what are currently viewed as waste products. The Biomass Research and Development Initiative in the farm bill provides for coordination of research on sustainable biomass opportunities, but the program lacks mandatory funding.
The Biobased Markets Program, also known as BioPreferred, directs federal agencies to increase purchases of biobased and renewable products, such as plant-based alternatives to petroleum-derived plastics that contaminate our oceans and emit greenhouse gases. Another biotech company, Virent, has developed renewable chemicals made from plant-based sugars, leading the way toward a more sustainable economy.
Biotech is making agriculture more productive, and further innovation in crop protection and drought tolerance is needed to ensure that productivity gains continue as the climate warms and the world’s population grows.
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Agricultural biologicals—such as microbial and plant-derived crop protectants developed by Bayer CropScience, peptide-based insecticides from Vestaron, and a new RNA-based pesticide from Greenlight Biosciences—leverage plants’ natural mechanisms to fend off pests and diseases, and give farmers more options.
Biotech companies also are tackling the problem of food waste by developing fruits and vegetables that stay fresh longer, like Okanagan Specialty Fruits’ Arctic apples and J.R. Simplot’s Innate potatoes. These innovations strengthen our food supply while reducing greenhouse gases from garbage.
These and other biotech discoveries will work only if we bring them to market. The farm bill can help by streamlining regulations to work at the speed of today’s innovation.
The pace and promise of agricultural biotechnology are amazing. But we risk losing momentum if lawmakers don’t act. The societal challenges that biotechnology can address continue to grow with every day that Congress delays in renewing and adequately funding these programs.
Climate change and hunger won’t wait. Neither should the farm bill. Congress must advance a bipartisan farm bill that’s focused on driving innovation forward.
Beth Ellikidis is vice president for agriculture and environment at the Biotechnology Innovation Organization, the leading trade association representing biotechnology companies, academic institutions, state biotechnology centers and related organizations in the U.S. and in more than 30 other countries.
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