Pass the Farm Bill for Mid-South Agriculture

COMMENTARY

Agriculture is not just a profession for those of us here in the mid-south. It’s a way of life, steeped in our history and central to our identity. For generations, our families have provided essential food, fiber and fuel to help sustain our national security. Since 1933, the federal Farm Bill has offered a critical safety net, helping farmers navigate challenges and sustaining our way of life. 

Despite years of negotiations, the next Farm Bill is way overdue, stalled amidst political bickering. In the ongoing lame duck session, Congress is negotiating a temporary extension of the Farm Bill until next year, providing an opportunity to keep voluntary conservation funding available for farmers.

A key sticking point in Congress has been the effort by some to use the Farm Bill to redirect or weaken the voluntary conservation funding provided to farmers in the Inflation Reduction Act — a $20 billion investment focused on soil health and resilience that is more crucial than ever as farmers confront unprecedented challenges. 

Farming remains a high-risk venture, subject to weather, war and pestilence. Whether small or large, farmers have adapted to many challenges over the years such as supply chain disruptions, chemical concerns, equipment breakdowns and leaps in technology. 

Today, our multigenerational family farms face an existential threat as the climate shifts and natural disasters become more common. These challenges not only threaten food security and the livelihood of farmers but also weaken our overall national security.  We cannot afford to reduce our funding of conservation measures that mitigate these risks as well as help farmers protect their land, boost productivity and stay profitable. 

Agriculture is the backbone of the communities and economy in the mid-south, where 46% of the region’s land is farmland and approximately 92% of farms are family owned. Agriculture contributes nearly $14 billion in net farm income to the region’s economy, making it one of our largest industries. Major funding for sustaining the region’s agriculture economy came from the IRA. From it, the mid-south received $48.5 million in 2023 to implement key conservation measures. It is essential to preserve this key conservation funding in the new Farm Bill to help underpin our rural economy.

Mid-south farmers use the funding to implement a variety of conservation measures. The Natural Resources Conservation Service serves as a critical resource for farmers to obtain invaluable information showcasing promising practices such as innovation grants, high tunnel systems and grazing lands conservation initiatives.

These practices, and others such as cover cropping to reduce erosion and improve soil health, and no-till farming to minimize soil disturbance, help mid-south farmers adapt to extreme weather variations while maintaining long-term land productivity.

It’s clear that farmers want more conservation funding, not less. In fact, a recent study shows that 74% of farmers across the nation support increasing investments in conservation to strengthen their operations and are urging lawmakers to preserve the $20 billion in conservation funding embedded in the IRA and to safeguard these critical investments for years to come.

The next iteration of the Farm Bill and its extension present a vital opportunity to enhance conservation funding, continue to invest in innovative agricultural practices, reduce input costs and build resilience to extreme weather to strengthen our food security. 

It’s past time for Congress to listen to farmers and pass a Farm Bill extension that continues to arm them with the conservation tools they need to succeed. Join us in urging our mid-south senators and representatives to act quickly to protect the focus and funding of the IRA voluntary conservation investment and pass this extension.

We must make the strategic investments in conservation and sustainability that ensure a vibrant, successful mid-south farming sector while also supporting our overall national security.

Eric Dupree is a fourth-generation farmer and landowner carrying on the family tradition that began after the Civil War during Reconstruction. His family farm was designated a Century Farm in 2017 by the Tennessee Department of Agriculture. Eric serves on the Tennessee State Soil Conservation Board and is chairman of the Crockett County U.S. Department of Agriculture National Resources Conservation Service Board. A soybean farmer, he is an avid conservationist implementing practices supporting sustainable agriculture in his farming operation.

Retired Lt. Gen. John Castellaw’s family has farmed in America for over 300 years, 200 of them in West Tennessee.  He served in the Marine Corps for 36 years before returning to run the family farm in Crockett County. During his military career, he flew over two dozen different aircraft, served on the U.N. staff during the Siege of Sarajevo, planned and executed humanitarian operations in Asia, Africa and Europe, commanded U.S. operations in East Timor, and was the U.S. CENTCOM chief of staff during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. He can be reached on LinkedIn.