The Farm Bill Through Peanut-Colored Glasses
With your Southeast Regional Ag News, I am Haylie Shipp. This is the Ag Information Network.
The Southeast is peanut country and as we look at recent advancements for the 2024 Farm Bill, most recently Senate Republican-drafted framework for the bill, we’d be doing ourselves a disservice if we didn’t look through our peanut-colored glasses.
That is what we are doing today.
Days back, Senator John Boozman (R-AR) released the Senate Republican-drafted framework for the 2024 Farm Bill, which addresses key priorities of the U.S. Peanut Federation (USPF). The proposed legislation includes maintaining the Price Loss Coverage (PLC) Program, increasing the reference price to match production cost rises since the 2018 Farm Bill, and implementing a voluntary base update.
Boozman’s framework was reportedly informed by feedback from peanut growers, shellers, and buying points, highlighting increased production costs, agricultural financing struggles, labor shortages, and trade barriers. The USPF is expressing appreciation for Boozman’s efforts, noting that the proposal aligns with the needs of the peanut industry and production agriculture across the U.S.
