The Iowa Corn Growers Association held their annual meeting this weekend and the group’s government relations director, Mindy Poldberg, says the farm bill was a key topic. Poldberg says a lot of ag groups are discussing whether to support the existing 2002 farm bill and rolling it forward. Poldberg says the corn growers do not support rolling the bill forward.
Poldberg says the corn growers continue to back another plan for the next farm bill. She says they back a plan they developed two years ago that would make a “revenue insurance product” that’s federally subsidized as the safety net for farmers. Poldberg says the corn growers plan has a couple of positive benefits.
Poldberg says the plan provides payments to farmers only the years in which they mostly need it. Second, she says it would eliminate the need for disaster payments and would give farmers a better idea of what their loss would have to be before farmers would receive any help.
Poldberg says the plan provides support — but kicks in only when needed. She says it would eliminate the need to go back to Congress and constantly ask for disaster assistance, which Poldberg says is “very valuable, both to the farm and to the taxpayer.”
Poldberg says the Iowa Corn Growers Association is talking with other commodity and farm groups seeking support of its plan for the next farm bill. Poldberg made her comments in a teleconference with reporters.