Focusing on farm bill programs that work for cattle producers

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Focusing on farm bill programs that work for cattle producers

2023 Farm Bill discussions are heating up and Ethan Lane, Vice President of Government Affairs with NCBA says funding for programs will be flat at best.

“Or probably a reduced funding environment, more likely,” he says.  “There’s going to be some real hard looks and sharpened pencils at which programs are really working for producers, which programs need to be shored up, and which programs really aren’t getting done what we need to get done.”

He tells Brownfield the Livestock Risk Protection program is one cattle producers would like to see reauthorized in the 2023 Farm Bill. “It really creates a lower, lower bar for small producers to benefit from it,” he says.  “You don’t have to have a big bank account to get started like you might like hedging or some other options for risk management strategies.  That’s a big deal for those smaller cow/calf producers who are at the core of our members and how we can make some more opportunities for them.”

And, Lane says, finding the right conservation program is also important, especially with the drought environments of the last couple of years. “What do we always end up talking about,” he says.  “We talk about the USDA needing to loosen restrictions back up so people can access that CRP land for emergency haying and grazing.  How do we create some opportunities in those programs so we’re not always in that tail-chasing cycle.”

AUDIO: Ethan Lane, NCBA Vice President of Government Affairs

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