Dear Better Farm Bill Friends,
People of faith don’t give up easily! This week, we repeat our call for reform of Title 1 and an end to trade-distorting subsidies. In addition, over the next few weeks we will highlight where the House failed and how the Senate can do better in specific areas of the Farm Bill. This alert will focus on competition issues, which now are grouped under a newly proposed Livestock Title.
Take Action!
Today a handful of global corporations dominate each sector of our food supply. The market control of the top U.S. food retailing and processing firms is at an all time high. The concentration power of these firms increases their ability to manipulate markets — eliminating free market competition to the detriment of family farmers and consumers. The Farm Bill passed by the House of Representatives did not address this issue. A comprehensive Livestock Title has a good chance of being included in the Senate version of the Farm Bill.
Call your Senators by August 28 at 1-800-826-3688 and ask them to support REDUCING TRADE-DISTORTING SUBSIDIES IN TITLE 1 and THE INCLUSION OF A LIVESTOCK TITLE. Or go to http://capwiz.com/pcusa/dbq/officials/ to find out who your Senators are and how to contact them.
Tell the staff person who answers that you are a constituent and that you want your senator to support reducing trade-distorting subsidies in Title 1 AND the inclusion of a Livestock Title in the 2007 Farm Bill because farmers and ranchers need a healthy marketplace to make a decent living.
You want a Farm Bill that supports farmers but does not distort international trade AND one that would return competition and fairness to markets. This will help give smaller family farmers a level playing field and lead to greater prosperity in rural communities.
With your help we can restore a healthy marketplace in the livestock industry.
For more information on the Livestock Title (formerly the Competition Title) visit the Presbyterian Hunger Program’s food and faith blog and the websites of our partners, the Western Organization of Resource Councils (WORC) and Sustainable Agriculture Coalition.