Leaders of the House and Senate Agriculture Committees released competing summaries of their new five-year farm bill proposals this week. House Chairman Glenn “GT” Thompson (R-Penn.) led by unveiling a five-page “high-level summary” of his plans. Just hours later, Senate Chairwoman Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) issued her own far more detailed plan with a 94-page section-by-section review.

The House version focuses on increasing support for the farm safety net and includes a provision stopping states from regulating livestock production outside their borders. The Senate bill would provide more modest boosts for commodity programs and permanently authorize conservation programs. Both bills would bring Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) funding into the farm bill’s funding baseline, but the Senate version would require all IRA dollars to be used to combat climate change.

The proposals were met with mixed reactions from other lawmakers and the farming community. House Agriculture Committee Ranking Member David Scott (D-Ga.) issued a statement opposing Thompson’s plan.

“Unfortunately, Republicans rejected [our] bipartisan approach in favor of a partisan bill with an untenable funding scheme,” he said. “By insisting on poison pill policies, Republicans have turned what could have been a genuinely bipartisan bill into a messaging exercise to appease their right flank that has no chance of becoming law.”

National Cattlemen’s Beef Association Vice President of Government Affairs Ethan Lane took Thompson’s side after reviewing both proposals.

“We are very pleased with the farm bill framework released by [Thompson],” said Lane. “Unfortunately, the Senate Agriculture Committee majority has failed to engage in the same level of outreach to real cattle producers, and their framework reflects that lack of producer input.”

Thompson has scheduled a full committee markup of his proposal for May 23. Stabenow said she does not currently plan to schedule a markup of her bill, but rather intends to use it as a starting place for discussions. 

USDA trade mission aims to open India to American goods

One of the Biden administration’s top trade officials led an agribusiness delegation to India in late April to build agricultural trade ties. USDA Under Secretary for Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs Alexis Taylor led a delegation of officials from 47 U.S. agribusinesses and 11 state agriculture departments to New Delhi, India.

USDA said India’s recent reductions of agricultural tariffs have made increased trade between the two nations more promising. These reductions targeted a variety of U.S. agricultural products, including poultry, vegetables, fruits, pulses and tree nuts.

“As the world’s most-populous country and fifth-largest economy, India is primed for continued growth as a top destination for U.S. food and agriculture products,” Taylor said. “With a growing middle class that’s expected to exceed 660 million by 2030, India presents a strong consumer-oriented market where exports from American agribusinesses and producers can flourish.”