| WASHINGTON -- In a break from traditional Republican farm policy, the
Bush administration last week criticized subsidies for big grain and
cotton farms and proposed putting money into conservation programs that
benefit more growers.
The subsidies are causing "unintended (and unwanted)
consequences," by stimulating excess production and inflating land
rents, the administration says in a 120-page report outlining its
priorities for farm and food policy.
A policy for all
Rewarding farmers for conservation and strengthening controls against
foodborne diseases and crop pests would provide broad benefits to the
country, the report says.
"Agricultural policy should embrace everybody who is in the
agricultural sector," says J.B. Penn, the Agriculture Department's
undersecretary for farm and foreign agricultural services.
The bulk of federal subsidies go to large farms that raise corn, wheat,
rice, cotton and soybeans, crops that account for 20 percent of the
nation's agricultural output.
The report also says new trade agreements are needed to expand markets
for U.S. farm products.
Penn, a Democratic economist, was the report's chief architect, but he
says the recommendations had been approved by the White House.
'A call for change'
Environmentalists praised the report, especially its assessment of
existing subsidy programs and its endorsement of incentive payments for
farmers who take steps to control animal waste and prevent fertilizer
runoff from their fields.
"It really is a call for change," says Tim Searchinger, an
attorney with the activist group Environmental Defense.
The American Farm Bureau Federation, the nation's biggest farm group,
is reacting more coolly.
"If you read between the lines, they're talking about basing farm
policy more on social interests than production. We would disagree with
that kind of philosophy," says Mary Kay Thatcher, a lobbyist for the
group.
The report makes few specific proposals but instead is intended to
provide guidance for Congress as it revises programs scheduled to expire a
year from now. |