Nutrition May Mold Next Farm Bill

LANSING - Jul 7/05 - MFB -- Nutrition will be an important factor in the next farm bill debate, according to David Schweikhardt, agricultural economist with Michigan State University.

Schweikhardt, speaking to farmers at Michigan Farm Bureau's Future Ag Policy and Profit meetings, said hand-wringing over the country's perceived obesity problem may be the catalyst needed to get urban members of Congress to vote for a new farm bill.

"As members of the House Agriculture Committee ask how to get (other) members of Congress to vote for a farm bill, they will turn to nutrition," he said. "It will likely be a nutrition-friendly farm bill."

That may mean commodity growers will have to move over to give fruit and vegetable producers entrance to new government programs, he said.

"Produce growers haven't been included in previous farm bills because each group has had its own unique marketing institution," he said. "There has never been one solution for their problems."

Schweikhardt said public - and in many cases Congressional - perception is that current agricultural subsidies on commodities such as corn foster poor health, creating a potential groundswell of support - and money - for healthier products such as fruit s and vegetables.

"I think nutrition will have staying power in the farm bill debate," he said.

U.S. Department of Agriculture officials have already begun hearings on the new farm bill, scheduled to be rewritten by Congress by 2007.

Copyright (c) 2005 Michigan Farm Bureau