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The Midwest Cattleman · April 23, 2020 · P16
Farm Bureau Asks Ag Secretary to Address Key Issues to Aid Farms,

Ranches Feeling COVID-19 Pressures

Nebraska Farm Bureau year, any instance of market ers and agricultural produc- Small Business Adminis-
is asking U.S. Secretary of manipulation should be pros- ers. While stores around the tration for businesses of all
Agriculture Sonny Perdue ecuted swiftly and to the full- country may see temporarily sizes, including agriculture,
to address four key areas to est extent of the law.” empty shelves, retailers re- we asked USDA to explore
help deliver relief to Nebras- Expedited rollout of finan- main confident the vast ma- ways to assist farmers and
ka farms and ranches feeling cial support authorized by the jority of food items will be ranchers who are struggling
pressure from the COVID-19 federal CARES Act, including available. While temporary or may be unable to make
outbreak, which has shaken assurance that financial sup- supply shortages are prob- payments to their loans with
commodity markets and com- port be provided for pork and lematic, long-term shortages USDA,” said Nelson.
pounded preexisting financial beef producers that do not would be of considerable con- “We appreciate all of
challenges faced by farm and typically fall under USDA cern,” said Nelson. “To that USDAs efforts to work with
ranch families due to a multi- programs, was also request- point, we asked USDA to ex- farmers, ranchers, and rural
year decline in farm income. ed in the letter to Perdue. plore haying and grazing of communities as we all ad-
In a letter to Secretary Per- “From pork produc- Conservation Reserve Pro- just to the unique situation
due dated April 9, Nebras- ers who have seen the lowest gram acres as a way to help and challenges presented by
ka Farm Bureau President prices in 17 years, to dairy pro- mitigate possible hay short- COVID-19,” said Nelson.
Steve Nelson made four spe- ducers who are dealing with ages if it becomes necessary The Nebraska Farm Bu-
cific asks of the United States upheaval in supply chains re- for producers to hold cattle reau is a grassroots, state-
Department of Agriculture quiring them to dump milk, to longer due to packing plant wide organization dedicated
(USDA) targeted to help farm corn producers watching with operation disruptions.” to supporting farm and ranch
and ranch families deal with concern as ethanol plants idle Nebraska Farm Bureau families and working for the
the COVID-19 fallout. or cut production, it’s import- also asked Secretary Perdue benefit of all Nebraskans
“We continue to hear con- ant USDA moves quickly to to explore additional flexi- through a wide variety of ed-
cerns about potential market roll out the financial support bilities, including authoriza- ucational, service and advoca-
manipulation particularly measures included in the tion of loan restructuring and cy efforts. More than 58,000
amongst our cow-calf pro- CARES Act,” said Nelson. loan balance write-downs, for families across Nebraska
ducing members. As such we Monitoring the needs of those who utilize USDA loan are Farm Bureau members,
asked the secretary to work those in the food processing programs, as many who uti- working together to achieve
with the Commodity Futures industry and providing flexi- lize USDA loans tend to be rural and urban prosperity
Trading Commission and the bility to make any needed reg- younger and potentially less as agriculture is a key fuel to
U.S. Department of Justice to ulatory adjustments was also likely to have equity or cash Nebraska’s economy.
ensure all laws are being rig- identified in the Farm Bureau to draw from during these
orously followed,” said Nel- letter. unprecedented times. www.nefb.org
son. “As we noted to the sec- “It’s critical food produc- “Just as the CARES Act
retary following the fire at tion facilities stay open and included additional lending
the beef plant in Kansas last operational, for both consum- opportunities through the

Coronavirus pandemic leading to costly

food waste for American farmers

By: Alex Hider

As schools, restaurants and stores and retail. As a result, store shelves stocked. But every day, whether they keep
other businesses cancel large farms that rely heavily on for farmers and foodservice the whole capacity,” Richard
orders for produce and dairy, large contracts from compa- companies alike, it's a diffi- Guebert Jr., Illinois Farm Bu-
America's farmers have been nies that service schools, col- cult and expensive process to reau president, told Politico.
forced to throw out thousands leges and chain restaurants pivot from wholesale to retail. According to The Guard-
of tons of fresh food. suddenly have no one to buy Sending food to grocery stores ian, farmers in California and
While grocery stores are their product. means new packaging and a Florida have been hit espe-
struggling to keep essential, As a result, much of their higher standard for produce, cially hard. In addition, dairy
non-perishable items like toi- perishable produce has gone things that take time and futures have nosedived — an-
let paper and dried pasta in to waste. Dairy Farmers of money to develop. other blow to an industry that
stock, farmers who rely on America estimates that farm- In addition, for many farm- was already struggling due to
business from wholesalers ers are dumping as many as ers, it's not possible to pause tariffs thanks to a trade war
have been forced to dump 3.7 million gallons of milk production and wait for de- with China.
thousands of gallons of fresh each day, according to The mand to increase. For ex- thedenverchannel.com
fruits, vegetables and milk. New York Times. ample, Politico reports that
According to The New York According to Politico, some readying pork products for
Times, the coronavirus pan- grocery chains like Kroger sale is a nine-month process,
demic has completely altered are working with foodservice beginning with the birth of
markets away from commer- companies like Sysco and U.S. piglets.
cial food services to grocery Foods to share labor and keep "Pigs continue to be born