Providing key information on recent developments in rural America, including updates on the Farm Bureau and salient issues converging around water quality, farm sustainability and the protection of biodiversity.

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1. Farm Bureau & Crop Insurance - $$ Millions in policies

2. Nader to speak at conference on BGH & the Destruction of Small Dairy Farms

3. Church Center for Land and People Conference - "Come to the Table"

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GREEN GrassRoots Environmental Effectiveness Network is a project of Defenders of Wildlife designed to serve grassroots wildlife and wilderness advocates. GREEN policy positions do not necessarily represent those of Defenders of Wildlife.

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With the Congressional agricultural dog-and-pony shows (field hearings) finished, it looks like it will be business as usual for corporate agribiz while farmers and the environment suffer.

Corporate agribusiness will continue to use their "front groups" to drive policies favoring industrialized food production, while family farm agriculture and rural America struggles with devastating prices and depleted environments .

Meanwhile, what sage farm policy do our officials advance? Crop insurance. Does crop insurance really help farmers? Not unless you are a big factory hog farmer. Does crop insurance really jeopardize the environment? Yes, especially regarding habitat loss in highly erodible arid and wetlands.

Meanwhile, what about our friends at the Farm Bureau? They have been scurrying all over capital hill for the longest time talking crop insurance to anyone who will listen. Needless to say, Farm Bureau leaders are hailing the recent Congressional passage of an $8.2 billion crop insurance package as a major victory for farmers.

Meanwhile, progressive farmers say crop insurance does not address the fundamental problems facing agriculture - low prices.

Even conservative Senate Agriculture leader Lugar says crop insurance could aggravate price depression by prolonging oversupply. So why is Farm Bureau jumping up and down while their family farmer members want real solutions to the price problem?

As Al Krebs wrote in a recent Agribusiness Examiner discussing the recent moves by Congress. "...in another apparent political coup by the American Farm Bureau Federation, some $8.2 billion would go toward reducing premiums on federally subsidized crop insurance over the next five years while making a series of changes in the insurance program designed to get more farmers to buy the coverage from an insurance industry in which the Farm Bureau has numerous vested financial interests."

No one really knows how much Farm Bureau insurance companies stand to make from increased crop insurance funding. Not even Congress.

And the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) says they will not release that data because to do so would reveal "corporate strategies." Nevertheless, Rural Updates has done some research and has been able to uncover the following basic facts:

The Farm Bureau’s vast insurance network (currently 54 companies) owns and controls about one-fourth of the insurance companies approved by the USDA to provide crop insurance.

According to USDA documents obtained by Rural Update sources, in 1998 Farm Bureau insurance companies wrote $81 million worth of crop insurance premiums. Based on new federal subsidies reaching approximately $3.4 billion annually, and assuming Farm Bureau keeps the same piece of the crop insurance "pie", Farm Bureau could be writing $161 million dollars worth of crop insurance premiums this year - or $800 million over the nest five. (duration of "emergency" funding)

That's a good chunk of change. Especially, when you figure all the new members they will get. Not to mention the fact that insurance companies are getting about one-third of the crop insurance subsidy paid directly to them in so-called administration and operating expenses.

Farm Bureau's involvement in the federal crop insurance program is highly suspect. As one reputable farm lobbyist in Washington said when asked about Farm Bureau’s involvement in the crop insurance program, "Sounds like it's time for an investigation, eh?"

One thing is certain: If the Farm Bureau leaders want to remove doubts about conflict of interest, they should divest themselves of all affiliation with the Federal Crop Insurance program. Until they eliminate their stake in the crop insurance program, they cannot claim they advance crop insurance in the interests of their non-profit members.

As it is not likely Farm Bureau leaders will make this decision on their own, taxpayers and policy makers should demand this divestiture. It is the only fair way to begin to create farm policy that truly benefits farmers, not the insurance industry.

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2. Conference on BGH & the Destruction of Small Dairy Farms

Ralph Nader and other fine activists and agitators will be speaking at a one day conference June 17, 2000 in Washington, D.C. This will be held at the Resources for the Future Conference Center at 1400 Sixteenth Street NW. This meeting will be exploring the threat rBGH use poses to small dairy farms, public health, animal welfare and the environment. Sponsored by the Sierra Club, the GRACE Factory Farm Project, The Milkweed, and the Animal Welfare Institute. .

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