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Farm organizations advocate for market-focused relief amid volatility

A coalition of ag groups would like to see a focus on strengthening markets as part of a future economic aid package.

RJ Karney, director of public policy with the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture, says the support would help connect farmers with local customers. “Here’s an opportunity for small farmers and ranchers to know they can have a guaranteed buyer whether that be through food banks and working directly with food banks, schools, penitentiaries and hospitals.”

He tells Brownfield there’s potential by tapping into the Administration’s initiatives. “We want to find those opportunities within the Make America Healthy Again movement to demonstrate here’s what farmers and ranchers have had the ability to do, and here’s what they can continue to do if these domestic markets are expanded.”

NASDA and other organizationslike National Farmers Union, American Farmland Trust and National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition recently sent a letter to Congress saying additional assistance is needed due to on-going market volatility, extreme weather and trade uncertainty.

Karney says the group isn’t targeting a specific dollar mount, but any additional aid would be step in the right direction.