Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler sits down each week with Southern Farm Network’s Rhonda Garrison to discuss “Today’s Topic.”
Last week the U.S. Senate passed its version of a new five-year farm bill. Now it’s the House’s turn.
Commissioner Troxler tells Rhonda that a full five-year farm bill will give America’s farmers and ranchers the tools and certainty they need to plan for the future and continue to meet world demand for food, fiber and feed.
The Senate’s farm bill addresses many of the priorities of the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture, an organization Commissioner Troxler is president of this year. The bill increases funding for the Specialty Crop Block Grant Program to $70 million per year. The Market Access Program, which helps U.S. producers compete in valuable foreign markets, gets sustained funding of $200 million.
The farm bill also expands the crop insurance program, providing more coverage for fruit and vegetable producers.
The House’s version of the farm bill has many differences with the version adopted by the Senate, and some of those differences pertain to funding for programs that aren’t agriculture-related. Still, Commissioner Troxler is hopeful the two chambers can work out their differences and pass a workable bill.
Click on the audio player below to listen to Commissioner Troxler and Rhonda discuss the latest developments in the continuing saga of the farm bill.
[Audio:http://info.ncagr.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/Troxler_6-18.mp3|titles=Today’s Topic for June 18]
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