Ag stakeholders react to Democrats’ rebuke of Senate committee’s farm bill text
The Agriculture Act of 2026 text presented last week by Senate Ag Committee Chairman John Boozman (R-Ark.) failed to garner enough committee votes Thursday afternoon to advance to the full Senate floor. The vote fell 11-10 along party lines, with all 10 Democrats in attendance and a proxy rejecting the measure.
“America’s farmers and ranchers have pleaded for more farm in the farm bill. Republicans provided it and Democrats rejected it and they simply cannot afford continued delays. The status quo is not only unsustainable for farm country. It is catastrophic. They deserve the certainty, stability and support only a bipartisan farm bill can provide,” Boozman said after the vote. “Instead, Democrats remain fixated on a partisan policy that allows states to continue the incredible wasteful spending of taxpayer dollars, ignoring our negotiated proposal.”
Negotiations for what’s been called Farm Bill 2.0 broke down over SNAP-related provisions, which also leaves the Save Our Bacon Act off the bill — at least for now. That proposal, which was included in the House-passed farm bill, was not part of the Senate committee’s draft and did not come up during Thursday’s markup. The measure would preempt certain state laws regulating the production standards of agricultural products sold across state lines, including California’s Proposition 12.
While animal-activist organizations, such as Humane World Action Fund, were pleased about that development, corn growers and Republican lawmakers were quick to lament the bill’s failure in committee.
“We are extremely disappointed that legislation important to so many Americans failed to advance. This bill was particularly important to corn growers who have long pushed for legislation that would allow for the year-round sale of E15, a bright spot in an otherwise dim economic outlook,” said Jed Bower, an Ohio farmer who serves as president of the National Corn Growers Association. “We implore senators to approve a bipartisan farm bill that extends consumer access to E15 and serves the interests of America’s farmers. We are running out of time in this Congress and urge action as quickly as possible.”
U.S. Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.) blamed Democrats, who she accused of balking at a compromise for holding states accountable for errors in administering SNAP benefits.
“We were given a choice to move forward with a strong bipartisan compromise that serves the best interests of American farmers, ranchers and rural communities or to continue clinging to insincere lip service that does nothing to help anyone. I’m disappointed that Farm Bill 2.0 was stopped today because this was our chance to deliver the certainty and support that farmers and ranchers in Mississippi and across the nation not only deserve but need to compete and prosper in today’s marketplace,” she said.
Commodity advocacy groups such as NCGA, the National Sorghum Producers, and the National Association of Wheat Growers affirmed that they will remain actively engaged with senators to reach an agreement for a farm bill before the end of the congressional session.
Meanwhile, pork industry groups have said they will also continue to press for their needs and argue to include the Save Our Bacon legislation in order to prevent a patchwork of state-by-state production standards that complicate interstate commerce.
National Pork Producers Council President Rob Brenneman said the proposal is about creating long-term certainty for producers rather than changing animal welfare standards. “We can’t afford to raise pigs 50 different ways,” Brenneman said. “It just gets too complicated.”
Brenneman also pushed back on claims that the legislation benefits foreign-owned pork companies or centers on gestation crates.
“There have been a lot of things go around that we’re supporting the Chinese on that. That is in no way true. We are not supporting the Chinese,” he said. “This truly is not a welfare issue like they say it is, and this truly is not about gestation crates.”
Although the Senate committee did not include the measure in its draft, the issue may not be settled. House Agriculture Committee Chairman G.T. Thompson has previously indicated provisions left out of the Senate bill could resurface during conference negotiations if lawmakers ultimately reach agreement on a final farm bill.
The post Ag stakeholders react to Democrats’ rebuke of Senate committee’s farm bill text appeared first on AGDAILY.
