During a recent phone call with Ag Secretary Brooke Rollins, American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall took the opportunity to discuss two important issues facing agriculture.
“Yes, we had a short discussion on the phone about the importance of transparency in pricing for poultry farmers, and how important the recent improvements to the system are to our poultry farmers. We also talked about the need for economic assistance for farmers and ranchers.”
Duvall said he had a great conversation with the Secretary, who understands the challenges facing U.S. farmers and ranchers.
“Secretary Rollins understands the need for economic aid, and was interested in other thoughts on the poultry transparency rules. This is all part of an ongoing conversation, and we’re going to keep in touch with the administration through a variety of channels about these issues.”
Duvall said his goal for the conversation was to emphasize the economic conditions that have led to a perfect storm of difficulties.
“Farmers are facing negative margins for many of their crops as supply costs remain very high and commodity prices have come crashing down. Economic assistance isn’t intended to help farmers make a profit or even to make their balance sheet whole. It’s simply meant to help them weather the storm and make it to the next growing season.”