Farmer and rancher delegates to the American Farm Bureau Federation’s 101st annual convention adopted policies to guide the organization’s work in 2020 on key topics ranging from dairy to labor, and from climate change to conservation compliance.
“Delegates from across the nation came together today to look ahead at issues and opportunities facing farms, ranches and rural communities,” said American Farm Bureau Federation vice president Scott VanderWal. “The 2020 policies ensure we are able to continue producing safe and healthy food, fiber and renewable fuel for our nation and the world.”
Delegates also re-elected American Farm Bureau president Zippy Duvall and vice president VanderWal for their third terms. VanderWal served as chair of the meeting on behalf of Duvall, who is grieving the death of his wife, Bonnie.
Delegates updated labor and immigration policies, emphasizing that the ag industry must see significant changes to the H-2A program.
While AFBF has long had policy in place to ensure an accessible, competitive guest worker program, the updates address problems with the adverse effect wage rate and emphasize the importance of year-round program access to all of agriculture. AFBF looks forward to working with Congress on efforts that align with these policy objectives.
After a year-long process to review ways to modernize Federal Milk Marketing Orders, AFBF’s delegates voted to support creation of a flexible, farmer- and industry-led milk management system. This includes giving individual dairy farmers a voice by allowing them to vote independently and confidentially on rules governing milk prices.
The new dairy policies, when combined, will form a strong foundation to guide the organization during future reform efforts to better coordinate milk supply and demand in the United States.
There are significant new policies on conservation compliance. Delegates called on the U.S. Department of Agriculture to significantly improve program transparency and due process for farmers. They specifically prioritized changes in USDA’s processes for wetland delineations and the appeals process.
Delegates also adopted a new policy supporting the repeal of Swampbuster provisions. The changes highlight growing frustration with conservation compliance practices within the USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service.
Delegates voted to support allowing a higher THC level in hemp, giving AFBF staff the flexibility to engage in discussions with regulators about the appropriate legal level, and to increase the window of time farmers are allowed to conduct THC testing, acknowledging the many questions about how the testing process will work and the potential for backlogs.
New policies are on the books supporting science-based climate change research and the documentation of agriculture’s tremendous advances toward climate-smart practices.
Delegates also made clear they want federal climate change policy to reflect regional variations, and they oppose a state-by-state patchwork of climate change policies.
Taking The Lead
Beyond policy changes, delegates also elected members to serve on the AFBF board of directors and national program committees.
David Fisher, president of New York Farm Bureau; Shawn Harding, president of North Carolina Farm Bureau Federation; and Randy Kron, president of Indiana Farm Bureau, were elected to fill one-year terms on the AFBF board of directors.
Thirteen other state Farm Bureau presidents were re-elected to two-year terms to represent their regions on the board.
- Midwest Region: Carl Bednarski, Michigan; Blake Hurst, Missouri; and Steve Nelson, Nebraska.
- Northeast Region: Rick Ebert, Pennsylvania; and Ryck Suydam, New Jersey.
- Southern Region: Mark Haney, Kentucky; John Hoblick, Florida; Harry Ott, South Carolina; Jimmy Parnell, Alabama; Wayne Pryor, Virginia; and Rich Hillman, Arkansas.
- Western Region: Bryan Searle, Idaho; and Ron Gibson, Utah.
National Program Committees
Morgan Norris of Florida was elected as the new chair of the AFBF Young Farmers and Ranchers Committee for a one-year term. She also will serve a one-year term on the AFBF board of directors.
Vickie Bryant of Kentucky, Dotty Jensen of Utah and Margaret Gladden of Indiana were elected to two-year terms on the Women’s Leadership Committee. Jennifer Cross of Maryland was re-elected to a two-year term.