crop insurance

Effects of climate change on farming, federal spending explored by U.S. Senate panel

BY: - June 7, 2023

WASHINGTON — U.S. senators on the Budget Committee dug into the impacts of climate change on farming during a Wednesday hearing, raising concerns about what the next few decades hold for food production and the way of life. But Republicans and representatives of farm groups pushed back against increased government regulation. Brent Johnson, president of […]

Iowa farmland stretches to the horizon in 2019. (Lyle Muller / Investigate Midwest IowaWatch)

Agriculture leaders urge a stronger farm safety net at U.S. Senate farm bill hearing

BY: - May 2, 2023

WASHINGTON — Farm and commodity trade association leaders lobbied for updating commodity programs and strengthening crop insurance programs at a Tuesday hearing of the U.S. Senate Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry committee.  The industry officials said federal crop insurance and the Department of Agriculture’s Price Loss Coverage and Agriculture Risk Coverage programs are not serving as […]

Indiana farmer Glenn Morris, 83, harvests corn on October 11, 2021. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)

Ag leaders lobby for better risk management programs at U.S. House farm bill hearing

BY: - April 27, 2023

WASHINGTON — Commodity trade group leaders at a U.S. House Agriculture subcommittee hearing this week advocated for bolstered risk management programs and maintaining foreign market access as tools to support farmers amid volatile times.   The industry representatives said supply chain disruptions and increased production costs have tightened margins for large-scale farmers, and decreased the effectiveness […]

U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and two of his colleagues met at a Grand Junction ethanol plant on April 12, 2023, to discuss the upcoming farm bill. (Photo by Jared Strong/Iowa Capital Dispatch)

Iowa ag groups seek more robust vaccine support in farm bill

BY: - April 12, 2023

GRAND JUNCTION, Iowa — Amid ongoing worries about avian influenza that has led to the culling of more than 13 million chickens and turkeys in Iowa in the past year, a priority among agricultural groups for the next federal farm bill is vaccine funding. They want “enough vaccines for any pandemic that might come to […]

Black farmer with digital tablet in crop field

U.S. Senate panel debates safety-net spending in upcoming farm bill

BY: - February 9, 2023

WASHINGTON — Members of the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee quibbled Thursday over spending on crop insurance and ad-hoc disaster relief, previewing potential fights in the 2023 farm bill. Legislators of both parties emphasized their support at a Thursday hearing for better funding programs that protect underserved producers, and accounting for future natural disasters […]