Farm Bill Presents Opportunity to Build on Recent Dairy Sustainability Wins

By Paul Bleiberg, Senior Vice President, Government Relations, NMPF

Congress is moving into the next farm bill ready to build on major movement on solutions that assist dairy farmers as they work toward their voluntary, producer-led goal of becoming greenhouse gas neutral or better by 2050.

Popular conservation programs received landmark new funding last year targeted toward practices that yield meaningful environmental benefits. Farmers can now obtain an investment tax credit to partially cover the upfront costs of installing methane digesters. Also, FDA received new resources for their review of innovative animal feed ingredients that can reduce enteric methane emissions Finally, Congress enacted bipartisan bills to better equip producers to navigate environmental markets and allow private sector partners to match funds in oversubscribed conservation programs.

That’s all prelude to this year’s debate over the farm bill, Congress’s most prominent agricultural legislation. Sustainability will be among dairy’s key areas of focus. USDA is using some of its new funds to make new resources available for voluntary programs like the Environmental Quality Incentives Program, which helps dairy producers carry out their proactive work to care for their land and water resources. Even so, the farm bill may present a chance to better target these new resources by helping producers cover the cost of adopting methane digesters or implementing new feed ingredients that become approved.

But where there are opportunities, there are challenges. The dairy industry must also work diligently to roll back barriers to entry and thwart new ones. Conservation payment limits prevent many farmers from meaningfully accessing these programs, so relief must be provided. EQIP’s livestock set-aside needs to be maintained to ensure dairy farmers are at the table when funding decisions are made.

The farm bill oversight process is underway, but the work is just beginning. Dairy stands ready to partner with Congress to build on last year’s policy successes and continue creating a sustainable future.

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