New Farm Bill Should be Public-Friendly

Calling the latest Farm Bill negotiations some of the most challenging and critical of his career, North Dakota Senator Kent Conrad has laid out a strategy for the development of a new Farm Bill. Conrad says we need a new farm bill that is easily defensible to the broader public.

Conrad is concerned – that powerful media outlets on the east and west coasts, along with opponents of government programs, have downplayed the vital role production agriculture plays – to the health of the nation and have been unfairly critical of federal farm programs.

Producers are telling Conrad – we need to maintain a strong crop insurance program. Conrad has proposed a new program that will compliment crop insurance, without duplicating or undermining it, – by providing some protection from shallow losses that crop insurance typically does not cover.