Commodity leaders tell Senate committee their top priorities: higher reference prices, crop insurance and market access
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Summary
Representatives from cotton, soy, corn, wheat, barley, sorghum, rice, peanuts, and sugar described regional impacts of the farm downturn and outlined commodity‑specific asks for the next farm bill and related policy actions.
A second panel of commodity leaders told the committee how the current farm downturn is affecting particular supply chains and requested tailored fixes alongside broad safety‑net reforms.
Nathan Reed (National Cotton Council) and Jennifer James (USA Rice) described how depressed prices and rising production costs threaten farm viability in the Delta and other regions. Reed emphasized modernization of marketing assistance loans for Upland and Pima cotton and a higher PLC reference price to reassure lenders. Jennifer James said rice producers suffered prolonged losses and that ‘‘nothing in my area pencils out’’ without updated reference prices and an effective 2025 safety net.
Josh Gackle (American Soybean Association) warned that tariffs and adverse domestic policy signals about edible oils could further shrink both export and domestic demand for soybean oil. He also urged policy support for biofuels and the 45Z clean fuel production credit when designed to reward agricultural feedstocks.
Kenneth Hartman Jr. (National Corn Growers Association) recommended strengthening ethanol blends (year‑round E15 was mentioned as a missed opportunity) and extending tax provisions that support producers. Keith Felty (National Association of Wheat Growers) described steep declines in net cash farm income for wheat growers and asked for meaningful increases in wheat PLC reference prices.
Chris Engelstad (National Barley Growers Association) and Amy France (National Sorghum Producers) described large acreage and processing declines in barley and drought‑impacted sorghum regions; both urged crop insurance improvements and PLC updates. Garrett Moore (U.S. Peanut Federation) testified that peanut reference prices have not kept pace with input cost increases and supported a voluntary base update to include newer producers. Tim Deal (American Sugar Beet Growers Association) urged modernization of sugar loan rates and a revenue insurance product for sugar beets.
Why it matters: commodity testimony showed the downturn is uneven but widespread. Witnesses asked the committee to combine cross‑commodity reforms (PLC increases, better crop insurance) with commodity‑specific fixes (marketing loan modernization, RFS/E15 policy, sugar loan rates, sorghum floor price proposals).
Ending: Committee members told witnesses they heard a consistent message and pledged to pursue bipartisan solutions tailored to regional and commodity differences.