In July, President Trump signed into law a budget bill that fundamentally changes the food and farming landscape in the U.S. by taking away nutrition assistance and healthcare for millions of Americans, all while adding to the national debt and cutting taxes for the richest Americans. The bill impacts our farming system by increasing subsidies for large commodity operations (paid for by the cuts to SNAP) and deals a major blow to the longstanding bipartisan farm bill coalition and process we’ve depended on for decades.
Meanwhile, the 2018 Farm Bill will expire on September 30, at which point Congress must extend it yet again or finally pass a new one. While an extension may not sound like a bad thing, the landscape of our food and farming system have fundamentally changed since 2018; we’re seeing worsening impacts from climate change, increased corporate consolidation in our food system, and now the impacts of the recent budget bill. A new farm bill is badly needed, but it must meet this moment by serving both farmers and vulnerable communities.
Farm Aid has long advocated for a new farm bill that supports a vibrant, family farm-centered system of agriculture. If Congress takes up a new farm bill this fall, it must be one that addresses the urgent challenges our farmers and food system face. In 2025, Farm Aid wants to see a farm bill that
- Fixes harms caused by President Trump’s budget bill by restoring funding to nutrition programs;
- Addresses the impacts of recent funding and program cuts and staff firings at USDA;
- Supports farmers in the face of climate change;
- Levels the playing field for small and mid-sized producers through supporting fair and competitive markets;
- Ensures that BIPOC, young and beginning and diversified farmers have equal access to tools like fair credit, financial assistance and land;
- Creates a permanent and sustainable safety net for farmers facing natural disasters.
A new farm bill is an opportunity to make meaningful, robust improvements and investments in our food and farming system; we won’t settle for anything less.
