Recently, the House Ag Committee heard from experts on crop insurance and the safety net programs. With the next Farm Bill looming on the horizon, these experts said that the pandemic and trade wars showed glaring holes in the effectiveness of programs like Agriculture Risk Coverage and Price Loss Coverage (ARC and PLC).
It took a lot more than Farm Bill safety nets to keep farmers floating during the pandemic. Crop insurance agent Robert Tate reminded lawmakers how much more was needed.
This was echoed by Professor Gary Schnitkey of the University of Illinois, Urbana. He said stronger support of farm bill programs would relieve the need for additional programs in the event of disasters.
Farmer Jeff Kirwan testified that the Commodity Credit Corporation has not kept up with changing needs.
He added that the Farm Bill does not provide any protection against widespread disasters to the entire Ag economy.
