Agriculture
Our nation's farmers are major providers for our country - they provide the food we eat, fuels for our cars and trucks, and the materials for the clothes we wear. We must continue to work to help our farmers and ranchers continue to produce the highest quality, lowest cost food supply in the world, and encourage new, value-added opportunities. Priorities should include:
- A continued countercyclical safety net for producers.
- Meaningful crop insurance that allows producers to hedge risks against weather and the market as well as allowing producers to insure against crop yield and quality losses and shallow losses.
- We must also work to open markets across the world to the products that we produce here at home, while maintaining a fair and level playing field for our producers.
- A permanent disaster title to help crop and livestock producers manage weather-related agriculture disasters.
- Enhanced renewable energy and conservation titles.
- 15 percent blend for ethanol fuels.
- Risk protection for livestock producers to deal with drought and feed shortages.
- U.S. Commercial Service and Foreign Agricultural Service should increase efforts to help state trade offices.
Senator Hoeven has a proven track record of working with state and federal officials to pass good policy that will help family farmers in North Dakota. This includes continued support to pass both the 2002 and 2008 Farm Bills, which included working with farmers groups to lobby for the incorporation of a permanent disaster title and crop insurance products that work for family farmers.