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| Craig says he'll fight for a new farm bill |
| By
Ruth Streeter, The Times-News November 29, 2000 |
And U.S. Sen. Larry Craig said he'll work hard to make a Congress largely unsympathetic to agriculture respond to ag interests. Craig met with about 70 farmers, business people and local leaders Tuesday in Burley City Hall, one of many stops around the state to take comments for re-authorizing the Farm Bill. Farming has changed a lot in recent decades and Craig suggested that farmers change the way they're doing business. "Are we going to look at loan programs and set-aside programs, or are we going to look at counter-cyclical kinds of programs that try to establish a minimum income or units of agricultural production like other countries have done"? Craig asked. Craig recently returned from a week in Holland, a country he said began subsidizing its farmers once America helped pull the economy together after World War II because farming was viewed "as much a social and cultural issue with them as it was an economic issue." "Are we at a time when we ought to consider looking differently at ourselves, as a country"? Craig asked. Some farmers lamented the low priority they place on the Congressional agenda, and the trade policies that mean "free trade and cheap food" to the detriment of the domestic farmer. Other farmers lamented popular opinion. Burley farmer Jed Wayment suggested farmers themselves help the average American recognize the importance of the 2 percent of Americans who farm. With that came Wayment's recommendation that growers across the nation dip into their pockets and conduct an education campaign in America. "That takes time, it takes dollars," Wayment said. If "Mr. and Mrs. Suburbanite" don't feel comfortable with America's farm policy, that policy will be forever changing, he said. But some said that's an ambitious idea, especially considering the farmer's traditionally conservative ways and his hesitation to enact change. "That's the problem with farmers, they won't (change)," said former farmer and current Burley businessowner Randy Golay. William Loughmiller of Loughmiller Inc. in Twin Falls argued that ag reform is starting to look like welfare and that some programs that allow farmers to receive a higher government payment if they only grow more crops is a concern. "I think we need to be very concerned about that," Loughmiller said. Other complaints included the lack of public concern about agriculture monopolies as well as the lack of production controls in the current Farm Bill. Oakley farmer Daren Critchfield said his solution would be for farmers to put aside 10 percent of their production of corn, wheat and barley, which growers would in turn sell to the government to make ethanol. Whereas the government gives out about $10 billion in aid, the government would be out less than $3 billion to purchase that excess production. Craig said he is "not necessarily" sure the family farm is done for. The problem with writing policy to help the family farm, is that its definition is blurred, he said. But commercially viable farms are no longer the mom-and-pop operations of only 150 acres. "That's not production agriculture anymore," Craig said. |
