Katie Kraska is a law student in the HLS Food Law & Policy Clinic and a guest contributor to this blog. Aquaculture is making waves in conversations about the future of farming. The industry now surpasses global production from wild caught fisheries, sparking domestic debate as lawmakers work to reauthorize the farm bill. Encompassing any propagation, breeding, rearing, and harvesting of…
Josie Dudzik is a PhD candidate in Nutrition and Dietetics at New York University and is a guest contributor to this blog. She was an intern in the Harvard Law School Food Law and Policy Clinic during the summer of 2024. Background The 2018 Farm Bill paved the way for domestic hemp production by reclassifying hemp as legal to grow…
John Hershey is a law student at Widener Law Commonwealth and a guest contributor to this blog. Crop insurance programs continue to be a sticking point in Farm Bill negotiations. Farmers pay federally subsidized premiums to obtain crop insurance coverage from private insurers. Crop insurance protects revenues when prices fall or natural causes such as drought or flood reduce harvests….
Beverly Bolster is an undergraduate student at the University of Maryland and a guest contributor to this blog. Sustainable farming practices, such as planting cover crops, applying compost to fields, rotating crops, and not tilling soil, can create long-term benefits for farmers, increase crop productivity, and benefit the entire food system. However, these methods may require increased costs or labor…
Emily Hatch is a law student in the HLS Food Law & Policy Clinic and a guest contributor to this blog. On February 9, the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry hosted its second hearing on the 2023 Farm Bill, which focused on commodity programs, crop insurance, and credit. In her opening remarks, Chairwoman Debbie Stabenow highlighted the fact that…
Valerie Marshall is a law student at Duke University School of Law and guest contributor on this blog. In FBLE’s 2023 Farm Viability report, FBLE recommends establishing a system for reducing crop insurance subsidies to farms as their annual gross income increases. The National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC) recently released a report about the effects of placing caps on crop…
In the aftermath of Hurricanes Florence and Michael, farmers across the Southeast face devastating losses to this year’s harvest and livestock operations. Through the Farm Bill and other authorizing statutes, Congress has created several programs that allow farmers to receive financial assistance after a natural disaster. These USDA programs go far in helping affected individuals recover and move forward. However, USDA disaster relief programs…
In the aftermath of Hurricanes Florence and Michael, farmers across the Southeast face devastating losses to this year’s harvest and livestock operations. Through the Farm Bill and other authorizing statutes, Congress has created several programs that allow farmers to receive financial assistance after a natural disaster. These USDA programs go far in helping affected individuals recover and move forward. However,…
Beginning today, FBLE is releasing report cards that assess how various drafts of the next farm bill align with FBLE’s policy recommendations. The goal is to provide a snapshot of a very long and complex piece of legislation, and to highlight where specific provisions succeed or fail to advance FBLE’s shared values. Each report card is keyed to one of…
Editor’s Note: This post is part of our series on marker bills and the 2018 Farm Bill. You can track the farm bill’s progress through Congress here and elsewhere on this blog. Farmers face a uniquely high amount of risk. An unexpected drought, an influx of pests, or a lower than expected crop yield can all have devastating effects on…