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Farm Bill Negotations Just Around the Corner as a Bill Expiration Date Looms

A cornfield in Northwest Iowa

 

While negotiations for the 2018 Farm Bill get underway in the Conference Committee, the trade war with China wages on.

 

On this episode of River to River, Neil Hamilton, Director of the Drake Agricultural Law Center, and Amy Meyer, Reporter for Iowa Public Radio and Harvest Public Media discuss the inner-workings and implications of the Farm Bill, which is set to expire in its current state at the end of September.

 

Hamilton notes the original House version of the Farm Bill was interjected with immigration-related policies and large increases in work requirements for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) beneficiaries. The bill failed in its origional form, then passed by a narrow two vote margain in June. As compromises commence for the new Farm Bill, worries about the economic implications of the trade war with China loom.

 

“We hope it gets resolved quickly. We really do need to have more agreements [outside of] China,” Gasser said. “Trade is important, particularly with soybeans and other agricultural products like pork, too.”

 

Later in the hour, Pork Producer Howard Hill and Soybean Farmer Ray Gasser join the conversation.

 

Ben Kieffer is the host of IPR's River to River
Katelyn Harrop is a producer for IPR's River to River and Talk of Iowa