Farmers and rancher say the farm bill protects everyone

TOPEKA, Kan. (WIBW) - Farmers and ranchers are calling for the passage of a new farm bill they say would protect everyone.

Officials with the Kansas Farm Bureau told me why the effort is so important.

when we talk about a farm bill it really is farm to table all the way to the supply chain, when we come to rural development, when we come to energy, when we come to credit, actually when we come to research.

Ryan Flickner with The Kansas Farm Bureau says they are urging lawmakers to update and improve the current 2018 farm bill.

“Let’s talk about 2018 versus now. I mean 2018 that was pre-COVID. We’ve had an entire global pandemic on our hands that have led to supply change disruptions, it’s also led us to some inflationary times. The price of diesel the price of fertilizer the price of seed about any other input that goes into agriculture today is significantly different than it was in 2018,” says Ryan Flickner with the Kansas Farm Bureau.

Flickner says the bill is supposed to pass September 30th but might take until January of next year.

“Congress on approximately a 5-year rolling basis updates farm policy to reflect the economic situation the planting intentions. Quite frankly the world GO politics of the day to update the farm bill to make sure the safety net reflects where we are in agriculture today for the next four to five years,” says Flickner.

Flickner says the bill affects anyone who eats in the United States.

“Our farmers and ranchers deserve that safety net. They provide the most abundant, the safest and quite frankly probably on a per dollar the cheapest food the world has ever known and without that safety net. It’s too high risk without the federal government being the backstop to make sure our farmers and ranchers are survivable especially in times like we face today,” says Flickner.

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