Farm Bill

Floor Speech

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Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I rise to commend Agriculture Committee Chairman Roberts and Ranking Member Stabenow for their leadership in crafting a bipartisan farm bill that will help support our Nation's farmers and growers, provide funding for critical agriculture research programs, and make important investments in nutrition and food security programs.

It is an exciting time for agriculture in Maine. In fact, according to a recent study, Maine ranks first in the Nation for farming outlook, which considers factors such as farmer age, percentage of beginning farmers, and number of farms per 100 residents. According to the most recent Census data, the share of Maine farms owned and operated by farmers under the age of 45 is steadily growing. These factors show that Maine farms are poised for continued growth and long-term success.

The bill we have just passed includes a number of provisions from the Next Generation in Agriculture Act, which I introduced with Senator Heitkamp, including a reauthorization of the Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Grant Program at a higher funding level. Since this program was established nearly a decade ago, it has supported more than 60,000 beginning farmers across every region of the country. In Maine, these grants have helped to build the capacity and skills of beginning farmers, as well as implement a dairy farmer apprenticeship program.

Maine's agricultural resurgence has also been bolstered by a rapidly expanding organic sector. According to the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association, Maine's organic agriculture sector has grown 76 percent over the past 5 years alone. In 2017, the association certified 535 farmers and producers representing more than 90,000 acres of farmland. The strong support for organic agriculture in this bill will help ensure that this sector continues its growth.

Federal investment in organic agriculture research, however, has not kept pace with the growth of organic producers. This bill incorporates legislation I introduced with Senator Casey that will increase funding for the Organic Agriculture Research and Extension Initiative, OREI. These additional resources will help ensure our farmers and producers benefit from the rising demand for organic products.

In addition to experiencing a resurgence in agriculture, Maine is also in the midst of reorienting its forest products industry following the downturn of traditional pulp and paper production in our State. I am encouraged to see that the bill supports innovative wood products research and development at institutions of higher learning. Based on provisions of the Timber Innovation Act, which I have cosponsored, the bill would authorize grants to advance the use of innovative wood products. Priority would be given to proposals that include the use or retrofitting of existing sawmill facilities with higher-than-average unemployment rates, which could be helpful to States such as Maine that are still recovering from the job losses from the closure of traditional mills.

An amendment that I sponsored with Senator Cantwell to direct the Forest Service to continue using remote sensing technologies when conducting forest inventory and analysis activities has also been incorporated. This technology is faster and less expensive thanphysically surveying plots of land and would enable the Forest Service to provide more accurate data to inform forest management decisions.

The bill also includes a number of provisions from the Local FARMS Act, legislation that I led with Senator Brown. One key provision provides mandatory funding for the Organic Certification Cost-Share Program, which helps to cover a portion of the costs associated with obtaining or renewing organic certifications.

Another component from our Local FARMS Act is the Local Agriculture Market Program, which will provide grants to support the development and expansion of direct producer-to-consumer marketing, as well as value-added agricultural products.

The bill also includes important provisions that help combat hunger, including the Local FARMS Act's establishment of a Harvesting Health pilot program through which fresh fruits and vegetables are provided to low-income individuals and households, as well as the reauthorization of the Seniors Farmers' Market Nutrition Program. The latter program is critically important for combating hunger among seniors and is complemented by the Farm Bill's reauthorization of the Commodity Supplemental Food Program, also known as the Senior Food Box Program. In an effort to help more seniors access and remain enrolled in the Senior Food Box Program, I am pleased that the bill includes a provision from legislation I authored with Senator Casey, the Nourishing Our Golden Years Act, which would allow States to establish a 3-year certification period for participants 60 years or older, effectively simplifying the process to provide this much-needed support.

The Specialty Crop Block Grant program that has been so vital for farmers and producers in my State is reauthorized for another 5 years. These grants support research and extension activities that address key challenges facing specialty crops, including Maine's iconic potatoes and lowbush blueberries, aiming to improve production efficiency, address threats from pests and diseases, more accurately prevent and monitor potential food safety hazards, and enhance crop characteristics.

The bill also makes important investments to support the export of U.S. agricultural products by reauthorizing both the Market Access Program, MAP, and the Foreign Market Development Program, which are critical to the success of Maine farmers and fishermen as they work to remain competitive in the global marketplace. According to the Maine International Trade Center, MAP has allowed Maine companies to expand their markets and create more local jobs by facilitating the promotion and sale of Maine products like wild blueberries in the Middle East, maple syrup in Central Africa, and shellfish in the Far East.

As we continue to promote products such as maple syrup abroad, we must also ensure that we are not hindering their success here at home. Pure maple sugar producers in my state have expressed serious concerns with the ``added sugar'' requirements in the FDA's updated nutrition facts label rule. The rule would require the label to state that all sugar in the product is ``added sugar.'' While the FDA intended for the rule to help consumers make better-informed dietary choices, it is clear that the Agency's proposal instead creates confusion. Producers believe that the term ``added sugar,'' when used with a single- ingredient sweetener such as pure maple syrup or honey, implies the addition of another sugar like corn syrup.

I have raised this issue directly with FDA Commissioner Gottlieb, who is open to considering other approaches proposed by the industry, and have addressed it through language in the agriculture funding bill that directs FDA to evaluate alternate labeling proposals. Although I am encouraged to see that the FDA recently announced it would ``swiftly formulate a revised approach that makes key information available to consumers in a workable way,'' I have joined Senator King in offering an amendment to help ensure that this problem is rectified.

Another reasonable reform I am pleased to see included is sponsored by Senator Grassley. It closes a loophole allowing an unlimited number of passive ``managers'' to be designated by farm entities for the purpose of collecting farm subsidies. These subsidies are intended to support workers who are truly ``actively engaged.'' This provision will save an estimated $211 million, $100 million of which will be reallocated to The Emergency Food Assistance Program, TEFAP, which supports food pantries around the country.

It is a testament to the leadership of Chairman Roberts and Ranking Member Stabenow that they have produced a strongly bipartisan farm bill, and I am pleased to have supported it.

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