Farm Bill Seeks More Chickpea Coverage

VANCOUVER - Dec 19/07 - SNS -- Long term, underlying changes in U.S. chickpea markets could come about if the Senate version of the U.S. Farm Bill wins out in negotiations between U.S. Congress and Senate over the final version which will be presented for signing by President George Bush.

For pulses, this is one of several differences between the two versions of the bill which need to be settled through committee. The most significant is that the Senate version, unlike the House, includes pulses in the counter-cyclical income support scheme and extends coverage to large chickpeas.

Target prices in the Senate version of the U.S. Farm Bill, which covers crops grown in 2008 through 2012, are $8.33 cwt for field peas, $12.82 cwt for lentils, $10.36 cwt for small chickpeas and $12.82 cwt for large chickpeas. The target price is the value used to determine "the payment rate for counter-cyclical payments."

Constituting minimum income guarantees, payments would be made to "producers on farms for which payment yields and base acres are established with respect to the covered commodity if the Secretary determines that the effective price for the covered commodity is less than the target price for the covered commodity.

Loan rates are $5.40 cwt for peas, $11.28 for lentils, $7.43 for small chickpeas and $11.28 for large chickpeas.

The House version does no include coverage for large chickpeas and sets loan rates at $5.40 cwt for peas, $11.28 for lentils and $8.54 for small chickpeas. The House version does not provide for counter-cyclical payments for pulses and therefore does not establish target prices.

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