Barnard
Last week, he and other farmers struggling to keep their operations afloat for posterity got a rare bit of good news in the form of the latest farm bill passed by Congress.
The five-year bill, which passed with large majorities in both the House and Senate after undergoing numerous revisions, includes a stronger safety net for dairy farmers and increased opportunities for hemp farmers, and it preserves important provisions such as crop insurance programs. Area farmers say they’re cautiously optimistic about the legislation, which the president has indicated he will sign.
“It’s one of the few positive things we can look at for the dairy industry,” said Doton, who sits on the board of the regional Agri-Mark/Cabot dairy cooperative. “It’s very positive for small farms.”
One of the major benefits of the new bill, which was negotiated in part by Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and U.S. Rep. Annie Kuster (D-N.H.), is a more robust risk protection program for dairy farmers. This includes reduced insurance premiums, more accurate calculations for feed crop costs, more flexibility in accessing insurance and partial refunds for premiums paid during the prior protection program.
The previous program, “just wasn’t set up the way everybody thought it would be,” said Doton, who participated in the previous margin protection program and plans to enroll in the new program.
Though he’s uncertain about all the specifics of the new program and their impact, Doton said he’s generally pleased with what he’s heard.
“It’s almost an unbelievable situation that the government would send back some of the money that was sent in in good faith,” he said.
Another significant feature of the farm bill is the removal of hemp from the federal list of controlled substances. In Vermont, where it’s legal to grow hemp, the bill will open doors for the nearly 400 farmers already cultivating hemp as well as making it easier for more farmers to diversify into the industry.
In the past, hemp farmers were hobbled by federal lending regulations, explained farmer Paul Franklin, who is director of the regional chapter of Yankee Farm Credit, a financial services cooperative. Although the details of the bill still have to work their way through the regulatory system, it appears the changes to hemp classification will provide farmers access to a much broader range of financial resources, he said.
Franklin, who runs Riverview Farm in Plainfield, with his wife, Nancy, and daughter, Amy, also said the bill preserves crop insurance programs that he and other New England fruit growers have come to rely on. Over the past several years, he’s utilized the program at his 44-acre orchard to mitigate losses due to wide winter temperature fluctuations as well as insect and disease damage caused by wet weather.
These and other government supports may prove increasingly valuable as climate change brings unpredictable weather and conditions to New England farms, said Pooh Sprague, who has run Edgewater Farm in Plainfield for the past 45 years. Sprague, who sells vegetables, fruits and ornamentals wholesale and retail, said he’s not dependent on farm bill provisions but has utilized them to make improvements and protect himself against losses. Cost sharing programs have allowed him to add irrigation systems and high tunnels, which in turn have helped him to diversify and streamline his operations.
Only in the past few decades has the federal farm bill made a difference for small farmers, Sprague said. The post-World War II notion “get big or get out” held firm into the new millennium, when crop insurance, low-interest loans, cost sharing programs and other perks were finally sewn into the legislation, Sprague said.
“Before that, hippie farmers were kind of left to our own devices,” he said.
Under the new administration, Sprague expected small farmers might lose ground again. The House version of the legislation released last May included cuts and changes that spurred area members of the foods industry to fly to Washington and meet with aides for Leahy, Kuster and other farm bill conferees. Among the key concerns raised by advocates were loopholes by which agribusiness could divert subsidies intended for family farms. That version of the bill also virtually eliminated the Conservation Stewardship Program and stripped funding for programs that support farmers markets and provide local food options for people on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).
Allan Reetz, director of public relations for the Hanover Co-op Food Stores and a member of the group that advocated for revisions in Washington, said the final bill is largely a victory for small farms.
“We’ve seen the impact of these programs and we understand the importance,” Reetz said. “There’s a lot of instability in the market, and these programs are just starting to have a positive impact.”
Doton, who taps about 3,000 maple trees in addition to milking 70 cows, said he’s also pleased that the bill exempts maple syrup and honey producers from a requirement to use the term “added sugar” on their labeling.
“That’s a small thing but it could have made a big mess,” he said.
One small thing Doton isn’t so pleased about is that the bill doesn’t address the use of the word “milk” by plant-based protein products. “That market is getting bigger and bigger, and it’s a thorn in the side of many people, those products being able to call themselves something other than nut juice,” he said.
Sarah Earle can be reached at searle@vnews.com and 603-727-3268.)