800 326 9054Provisions in the House Agriculture Committee’s farm bill that addressed issues like Proposition 12 and pesticide labeling drew fire and some praise after the text’s release.
Some farm groups, led by the American Farm Bureau Federation welcomed the bill’s revisions to various provisions of the 2018 farm bill that have had to be repeatedly extended because lawmakers have been unable to agree on a broad reauthorization of the 8-year-old law.
Some major commodity groups didn’t release statements after the bill’s release, likely reflecting the fact that their key concerns were addressed last year in the passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which expanded commodity program supports and increased crop insurance benefits.
Here in alphabetical order are excerpts of how various organizations responded to the legislation Friday:
Read more about the bill here.
Agricultural Retailers Association: “Agricultural producers continue to face significant challenges, including volatile markets, extreme weather, global trade instability, labor shortages, and rising input costs. A strong, forward looking Farm Bill is essential to maintaining a reliable safety net that supports our nation’s food, energy, and fiber supply, while also investing in conservation, research, rural development, crop protection, trade promotion, and nutrition programs.” – President and CEO Daren Coppock
Animal Wellness Action and the Center for a Humane Economy “It’s no small matter for a handful of lawmakers to try to overturn the votes of 10 million Americans who approved measures to halt the use of immobilizing crates for pigs. Given that nearly all House Democrats are on the record in opposition to the Save Our Bacon Act, and dozens of Republicans also oppose it, it’s not a serious legislative proposal. If this is the offering from the committee majority, there’ll be no Farm bill in 2026.” – President Wayne Pacelle
American Farm Bureau Federation: “We’re still reviewing the text of the bill, but it includes important updates to credit, conservation, research, and rural development programs, and calls for expansion of specialty crop programs. The bill also preserves interstate commerce to enable farmers to remain competitive in the evolving marketplace. We urge the House Agriculture Committee to work in a bipartisan manner to find consensus and move the bill forward. Additionally, in light of the ongoing economic conditions plaguing rural America, Farm Bureau will continue to work with congressional leaders on our top priorities including additional funding for bridge assistance payments, year-round E15 and a solution to our agricultural labor crisis.” – President Zippy Duvall
American Soybean Association: “We appreciate that Chairman Thompson heard the concerns and needs of soybean farmers and addressed them in the bill. The provisions included will provide much-needed market and regulatory certainty for producers facing new risks and difficult business decisions.” – Scott Metzger, ASA president and a soybean farmer from Ohio
Center for Biological Diversity: “This Republican Farm Bill proposal is a grotesque, record-breaking giveaway to the pesticide industry that will free Big Ag to accelerate the flow of dangerous poisons into our nation’s food supply and waterways. This bill would block people suffering from pesticide-linked cancers from suing pesticide makers, eviscerate the EPA’s ability to protect rivers and streams from direct pesticide pollution, and give the pesticide industry an unprecedented veto over extinction-preventing safeguards for our nation’s most endangered wildlife.” – Brett Hartl, government affairs director
Center for Budget and Policy Priorities: “No one should go hungry in a nation with as many resources as ours, and the farm bill presents a critical opportunity for Congress to reduce food insecurity by restoring and strengthening SNAP, our nation’s most important and effective anti-hunger program. Last year, 47.9 million people lived in households that struggled with food insecurity, and millions will see their food assistance cut substantially or terminated altogether as the full brunt of the Republican megabill’s SNAP cuts take effect. The House Agriculture Committee’s farm bill proposal ignores the urgent need to address this harm.” – Ty Jones Cox, vice president for food assistance
Environmental Working Group – “House Republicans can’t credibly claim to back an agenda that supports public health or protects kids while advancing a bill that weakens protections from pesticides and hands more power and profits to foreign pesticide manufacturers. Congress should not be in the business of stripping states of their right to protect children from toxic chemicals. This provision would silence parents, override local decision-making, and put corporate profits ahead of kids’ health.” – Geoff Horsfield, legislative director
Food and Water Watch: “Any Farm Bill proposal that includes the Cancer Gag Act and EATS Act must be dead on arrival. These Big Ag poison pills will tank any hope of a fair Farm Bill. Families and farmers are hungry for federal policy that supports small- and mid-sized producers and keeps food affordable. Instead, Chairman Thompson appears poised to check off industry’s cruel wish list.” – Mitch Jones, managing director of policy and litigation
Food Research and Action Center: “The proven benefits of SNAP are clear as day, which is why members of the House Agriculture Committee must reject Chairman Thompson’s proposal. Congress should not advance any Farm Bill or farm relief legislation that fails to invest in SNAP and address the crushing impacts of SNAP cuts in H.R.1. – because no Farm Bill is better than a bad one.” – President Crystal FitzSimons
International Dairy Foods Association: “Chairman Thompson’s draft Farm Bill builds on the strong momentum behind dairy nutrition incentives and reflects a clear commitment to making America healthy again. By expanding SNAP dairy incentives to include additional nutritious dairy products and providing certainty to core federal dairy programs, this legislation ensures low-income families have greater access to affordable, wholesome dairy foods while giving farmers and processors the certainty they need to continue delivering for America.” – said President and CEO Michael Dykes
Invest in our Land: “Invest in Our Land appreciates Chairman Thompson’s efforts to pass a Farm Bill that includes robust support and reforms for federal conservation programs, strengthens access to precision agriculture tools, and reauthorizes the Conservation Reserve Program. However, funding and policy improvements alone are not enough when NRCS capacity has been hollowed out over the past year, with 22 percent of its staff – equal to 2,673 employees – leaving the agency in just the first half of 2025. Without sufficient NRCS staff, programs and payments stall, contracts go unimplemented, and farmers are left carrying these consequences alone.” – Executive Director Rebecca Bartels.
National Cotton Council: “Thanks to Chairman Thompson’s tireless work, we were fortunate to see much of the farm bill signed into law as part of the OBBBA, but now is the time to finish the job. Passage of the Farm, Food, and National Security Act would significantly benefit the cotton industry by safeguarding the marketing loan program during future shutdowns, advancing the effort to create a harvest incentive insurance option, and providing a commonsense regulatory framework for crop protection products.” – Chairman Nathan Reed
National Council of Farmer Cooperatives: “Farmer co-ops rely on strong risk management tools, effective conservation and trade programs, and policies that support investment and innovation across rural communities. This draft reflects meaningful progress in a number of areas that matter to our members and reauthorizes a number of critical programs left out the reconciliation process. As the House Agriculture Committee moves toward markup later this month, we look forward to working with lawmakers on both sides of the aisle and hope to see amendments considered and approved on issues that are particularly important to farmer cooperatives.” – President and CEO Duane Simpson
National Milk Producers Federation: “NMPF thanks Chairman Thompson, House Agriculture Committee members, and their staffs for working to put together a farm bill that will bring greater certainty to producers at a difficult time. Dairy farmers look forward to working with House members and senators as this legislation makes its way through Congress, and we pledge our support in crafting the best legislation possible.” – President and CEO Gregg Doud
National Pork Producers Council: “America’s pork producers thank Chairman Thompson for continuing to take bold steps once again to protect our livelihoods from an unsustainable patchwork of state laws. We implore the full House Agriculture Committee to stand up for the American farmer, preserve states’ rights, and help keep pork affordable for the American consumers.” – President Duane Stateler, a pork producer from McComb, Ohio
Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership: “For a Farm Bill to pass in this Congress, it will have to be bipartisan. For it to deliver for fish and wildlife, it will need strong Conservation and Forestry Titles. In the coming days, the TRCP and our partners will dig into the bill, evaluate its probable impacts on habitat and access, and work to ensure decision makers fully understand what is at stake for hunters and anglers. Look for a more detailed analysis of the bill’s content and impacts after it is debated by the Committee.” – Aaron Field, director of private lands conservation
Union of Concerned Scientists: “The farm bill should be a tool to support farmers, protect our air, water and soil, and safeguard public health. Instead, this proposal largely reflects the interests of corporate agribusinesses and industry lobbyists, while coming at a real cost to farmers’ budgets, clean water, and rural communities. Extending the current farm bill would be less damaging than passing this rotten deal.” – Kate Anderson, director of the food and environment program
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*Sourced from Agri-Pulse.