The president of the Nebraska Sugarbeet Growers says that nations sugarbeet producers who have just survived a period of record low prices for their product say they are frustrated with the delays on the Farm Bill.
However, he says, they also feel they are on the way to recovery, if their proposals are implemented in the next farm legislation.
The sugar policy passed in the House and the Senate, said Mitchell area farmer, Robert Bob Busch, president of the Nebraska Sugarbeet Growers Association. All it needs now is to go to a conference committee, but they are still talking back there, and have effectively killed any chance of getting a new farm bill out this year.
Busch said sugar beet growers are frustrated because they fear further delays will result in the demise of an allotment program that would limit the acres of sugar beets that could be grown.
Busch said he would rather get the basics of an allotment program into the Farm bill and work out details later, but that isnt likely to happen.
We need to regulate our domestic supply, Busch said Friday afternoon. Right now our ratio of use to supply is down. That is a clear message that supply and demand does work. The PIK (Sugar Payment-In-Kind) was successful and Mother Nature played a big role. The cane grower production was up, but not enough to offset the lower sugar beet production.
Even though current farm programs do not expire until next fall, a lot of people would like to know ahead of time so they can plan their operations.
A Farm Bill would let us starting planning early, Busch said. This is not just a one-year thing, but multi-year. The farm bill brings stability to the community and the bankers who work with farmers.
What a message this would have sent to bankers and farmers, Busch said. It would have given them something to rely on and make plans around.
Nebraskas U.S. Sen. Chuck Hagel was one of those calling for more debate, saying the Harkin-Daschle bill was not a good one.
We should take the time we need to thoughtfully debate it and offer amendments to improve the bill, Hagel said. We should stay in session and vote on the farm bill until we get it right.
Following the vote to continue debate, Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle (D-SD), announced there would be no votes on the bill until next Tuesday.
Farm organizations have been almost unanimous in calling for quick passage of new farm legislation because they fear new economic forecasts will cause cutbacks in funding.
Hagel said the money has been earmarked, so there is no reason to rush into passing legislation.
Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, said Congress is unlikely to finish work on the farm bill before January or February.