Farm bill adds cash for state crops
WASHINGTON – Lawmakers unveiled a compromise farm bill Thursday providing roughly $1.3 billion to the nation’s fruit and vegetable growers for grants, research and help in opening foreign markets to the apples, cherries, raspberries and other crops grown in Washington and elsewhere.
After more than a year of haggling, the House and Senate are expected to vote next week on the final version of the $286 billion, five-year farm bill.
But the White House indicated President Bush is likely to veto the bill because it is too expensive at a time when crop prices are sky high and because it includes trade-distorting provisions. It’s unclear whether the measure will pass with enough votes to override a presidential veto, but in an election year the measure is expected to have strong bipartisan support.
For the first time, the farm bill includes a section specifically devoted to so-called specialty crops – fruits and vegetables. The $1.3 billion includes funding for an expanded program of block grants for the states along with money for research, pest and disease management, promotion and market opening initiatives.
The bill also includes $1 billion to improve childhood nutrition through the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Snack Program, which is operated through schools.
Washington ranks No. 1 in the production of such crops as apples, red raspberries, sweet cherries, pears and hops.
“It’s a step in the right direction, a pretty significant step compared with the last farm bills,” said Henry Bierlink, executive director of the Washington Red Raspberry Commission.
Even though specialty crop growers had initially sought $5 billion in funding, he said the latest bill recognizes for the first time there is more to agriculture than just program crops such as corn, wheat, soybeans and cotton. “It’s not just the breadbasket in the Midwest and the South anymore,” he said, adding the money for fruit and vegetable research represents a “long-term investment that keeps us competitive globally.”
Many details of what’s included in the bill remained sketchy Thursday. And though the bill apparently reins in some farm subsidy programs, it reportedly falls short of what the White House and even House Speaker Nancy Pelosi had hoped for.
Only 20 percent of Washington state’s farmers receive federal subsidies, which totaled $2.5 billion over the past 10 years. Whitman County has traditionally been one of the top wheat producing counties in the nation.
The language in the bill is complicated. One of the reforms involves lowering the income cutoff on eligibility for federal subsidies from $2.5 million to $500,000.
Specialty crop growers do not receive direct federal subsidies.
The bill provides $15 million to compensate asparagus growers in Washington, California and Michigan who have been hurt by cheap asparagus imports from South America.
The legislation also includes $20 million for a new program called the National Clean Plant Network. The program, championed by Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., is aimed at ensuring that safe, virus-free plant materials are available for use in orchards, vineyards and for other crops.
Washington state lawmakers were generally pleased with the final version of the bill.
“Agriculture is a driving force behind our state’s economy, and investments in this farm bill will help keep it that way for years to come,” said Murray, adding she was especially pleased the bill would provide “comprehensive help” for fruit and vegetable growers. “These growers are a big part of why agriculture is the state’s largest industry, and in a globally competitive market they need all the support we can provide.”
Rep. Rick Larsen, D-Wash., said the funding for specialty crops will help the state’s growers “compete with farms down the road and around the world. Investments in research, pest management, trade promotion and nutrition initiatives are money well spent, not only for local fruit and vegetable growers but for the families that rely on them.”