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AFT Opposes Any End-of-Year Package Without IRA Conservation Funding Transfer and Producer Economic Assistance  

The holidays are a special time when many of us gather with loved ones over meals. But before we turn to the holidays, we will not turn our backs on the very people who make those meals possible.  

The suffering of many of our nation’s farmers and ranchers is all too real. Net farm income has declined by nearly a quarter since 2022. In addition to weak prices and increasing production costs, farmers and ranchers nationwide have faced weather-related disasters. This year alone, producers experienced destructive hurricanes in Texas and the southeast; devastating floods in the northeast; and catastrophic wildfires in the west. In the face of such headwinds, it comes as no surprise that the 2022 Census of Agriculture showed a loss of over 141,000 farms.  

Right now, Congress has a chance to address these challenges as part of an end-of-year package by transferring remaining Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) conservation funding into the Farm Bill, and by providing producer economic assistance. The transfer of the IRA conservation funding will ensure increased long-term support for producers in implementing the very practices needed to improve their profitability and make their operations more resilient to extreme weather. The economic assistance will support farm income at a time of downturn and uncertainty, helping keep producers in business and food on our plates.  

American Farmland Trust stands with our nation’s farmers and ranchers in opposing any end-of-year package that does not include both the transfer of the IRA conservation funding and economic assistance. We urge Members of Congress to do the same.