United States Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) spoke with farm broadcasters and reporters on Tuesday and commented on the current state of the ag economy.
With lower commodity prices Grassley stressed the need for updated reference prices in a new five-year farm bill. He says that farmers need updated reference prices in a new five-year farm bill to keep pace with increased input costs.
Grassley says that reference prices should be adjusted to accurately reflect the current state of the ag economy.
Grassley says that the House version of the farm bill does a better job of updating the farm safety net than the Senate version of the bill.
Grassley was also asked if the current depressed commodity prices have directly led recent to ag manufacturing job losses.
In recent months John Deere, CNH, and AgCo have announced job layoffs. Last Thursday, John Deere announced more layoffs at its Waterloo facility in eastern Iowa.
Senator Grassley made his comments on Tuesday during his weekly ag conference call with farm broadcasters and reporters.
