Each summer, ELI's interns complete an independent research project (IRP) where they choose a topic to explore deeper. This blog offers an insight into the chosen focus and the research outcome.
This blog was written before the Farm Bill expired.
This fall, members of Congress continue to work towards a new Farm Bill. As perhaps the single most consequential piece of legislation relating to food, agriculture, and nutrition, the Farm Bill has wide reaching implications for farmers and consumers alike. But the 2018 Farm Bill expired last year, and the United States is currently operating under a one-year extension of that bill. With less than one month left before the extension expires, will Congress be able to pass a new bill, and can it be one that prioritizes environmental justice?
The USDA has a documented history of systemic discrimination against minority farmers, which was acknowledged by the agency in a 1997 report. Still, subsequent lawsuits have claimed that the discrimination has endured. For example, in Pigford v. Glickman (1999) and Keepseagle v. Vilsack (1999), Black and Indigenous farmers sued the USDA for discrimination in the allocation of farm loans and other programs. Inaccessible loans had pushed these farmers out of business, which then “led to vast losses of land, income, profits and generation wealth.” Understanding this injustice and exploring avenues for relief became the focus of my independent research project at ELI, where I investigated how the Farm Bill impacts “socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers” (SDFRs).
An SDFR is defined as “a farmer or rancher who is a member of a group whose members have been subjected to racial or ethnic discrimination (7 U.S.C. §2279) and in some cases, racial, ethnic, or gender discrimination (7 U.S.C. §2003).” In addition, the USDA defines a “beginning farmer or rancher” (BFR), as a producer “who has not operated a farm or ranch, or who has operated a farm or ranch for not more than 10 years (7 U.S.C. §1991(a)(8) and (11)).” Beginning farmers face unique challenges given the difficulties of entering farming, such as accessing land, making down payments, and connecting with assistance programs. These challenges may be exacerbated if the farmer is also a member of a minority group.
Although the Farm Bill might not typically be considered an environmental justice (EJ) bill, it uses terms like SDFR and BFR to delineate certain programs for minority farmers. For example, the 2018 Farm Bill established the Farming Opportunities Training and Outreach Program (FOTO), which is “the leading USDA program supporting socially disadvantaged (and beginning) farmers and ranchers, in terms of its operational breadth and funding.” This program provides grants to organizations for education, mentoring, and technical assistance initiatives, offering vulnerable farmers the support they need to begin and maintain their farms under difficult conditions. Notably, FOTO was established as a long-term program; in fact, the Farm Bill secures $50 million in baseline funding for the program for each fiscal year after 2023.
Other EJ-related programs in the Farm Bill include scholarships for students at 1890s institutions, education grants programs for Hispanic-serving institutions, grants for youth organizations, and crop insurance support for beginning and veteran farmers and ranchers. These programs demonstrate the Farm Bill’s capacity to promote environmental justice and represent a crucial step towards redressing the historic burdens placed upon farmers of color and other disadvantaged farmers and ranchers. That said, the longevity and scope of many of these programs may be subject to change each time a new Farm Bill is passed.
There is still much work to be done before a compromise is reached and a new bill gets signed into law. However, as negotiations proceed and new Farm Bill drafts are released, it will become easier to evaluate whether and how Congress plans to adjust environmental justice-related programs. Going forward, the Farm Bill should continue to offer a pathway for Congress and the USDA to expand opportunities and resources to all farmers, especially those who have been marginalized by farm bills in the past.