Jeff Beach
North Dakota Monitor
Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar said she is “obsessed” with getting a new farm bill passed before the end of the year. Republican Sen. John Boozman was more reserved, agreeing a farm bill should be passed but that “we need to do the right thing.”
Klobuchar, of Minnesota, and Boozman, of Arkansas, spoke during a Senate Agriculture Appropriations Committee hearing Thursday at Grand Farm’s Innovation Campus west of Casselton. The hearing was organized by Sen. John Hoeven, R-N.D., and also included Sen. Tina Smith, D-Minn.
“All of us are deeply involved in the farm bill,” Hoeven said.
The farm bill, which covers both agricultural support and nutrition programs, was extended last year after Congress failed to agree on changes before it was due to expire at the end of 2023.
The bill sets rules for the next five years, part of the reason why Boozman says it is important not to rush something through.
Hoeven, who also serves on the Agriculture Committee, said the main sticking point keeping a farm bill from getting passed is negotiations over what is known as reference prices. When market prices for crops such as corn and soybeans fall below the reference price, it triggers safety net programs that can help keep farmers in business.
In an interview, Matt Perdue, policy specialist with the North Dakota Farmers Union, described the reference price as a “floor” under the market.
“If prices are going to drop below this floor, the federal government will provide some support to make up, not the entire difference, but some of the difference to ensure that the family farmers can continue to continue to produce, be productive, and ultimately stay in business and stay afloat,” he said
Perdue said farm groups generally want higher reference prices, but that would mean additional cost.
While there is some accounting for market fluctuation in the reference price, Perdue said it does not account for major increases in costs for things such as fertilizer, seed and fuel.
“That price floor should be tied to the cost of production,” Perdue said.
This year, farmers are facing some of the lowest market prices in recent history. That is due, in part, to large yields that are expected to provide ample supply.
In an Aug. 14 U.S. Department of Agriculture report, an average price received by producers for the 2024 corn crop was lowered 10 cents to $4.30 per bushel. For soybeans, it was $11.10 per bushel, down 10 cents from the previous month.
Perdue, who lives in Jamestown but farms with his parents near Ray, said this year’s strong yields will help farmers get by, but the 2025 growing season could be a different story.
“Next year, you’re going to see a lot more farmers in a really, really tough situation,” Perdue said.
Justin Sherlock farms near Dazey north of Valley City and is president of the North Dakota Soybean Growers Association. “I think we’re entering a farm crisis and it’s not being talked about yet,” he told the Monitor.
Congress is running out of time to get something done before the end of the year.
Boozman said resetting the farm safety net is going to have to be a bipartisan effort.
Jay Debertin, president and CEO of Minnesota-based, farmer-owned co-op CHS, said he understands that compromise on a farm bill won’t make everyone happy.
“If all four of you are voting for it,” he told the senators, “CHS is there.”
This article was first published in the North Dakota Monitor.
