Washington D.C. (July 24, 2007) - The National Family Farm Coalition is disappointed with the Farm Bill as passed by the House Agriculture Committee. Unlike many other farm and commodity groups, we never endorsed the 2002 Farm Bill and its costly reliance on taxpayer subsidies. We believe vital change is needed in our farm program to sustain family farmers and Rural America. However, we disagree with the approach of some reformers pushing to gut farm programs, eliminate subsidies and essentially privatize risk onto farmers. These proposals imply that subsidies are the root of the problem. The real problem lies with prices that fail to meet the cost of production for farmers.

The National Family Farm Coalition believes a middle ground can be found in supporting policies that would reinstate strategic grain reserves to stabilize volatile crop prices, and would reduce controversial government subsidies by replacing the current loan deficiency payment with a price floor that would provide farmers with a safety net in the marketplace. NFFC and over 35 organizations sent a letter to the House Agriculture Committee expressing this position on July 13th.

NFFC President George Naylor said, "The debate over how much we should cut subsidies or limit payments misses the point of who really benefits from our subsidy system: food processors, multinational grain traders, and industrial livestock operations who are able to access cheap grain, with taxpayers making up the difference for low prices. It's not farmers who benefit. The House Farm Bill continues the same failed status quo, but what reformers are pushing offers much worse for family farmers. We need a new approach to help family farmers stay afloat, and that is with a price floor combined with food and feed reserves."

To review more effective family farmer policy, read the Food from Family Farms Act.