The National Young Farmers Coalition says the Senate Agriculture Committee’s latest Farm Bill markup includes several important wins for small and beginning farmers, but significant concerns remain. The committee approved amendments creating an Office of Small Farms, authorizing peer-to-peer farmer education, and establishing a permanent framework for the Local Food Purchase Assistance program. Coalition Executive Director Michelle Hughes says those provisions would strengthen local food systems and support small producers. However, Young Farmers says the bill still lacks structural investments to improve land access for beginning farmers and does not reverse $187 billion in previously enacted SNAP cuts. The group also criticized expanded Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act provisions, warning that new penalties and liens could create risks for some underserved farmers. Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley says lawmakers should focus on helping young people enter agriculture rather than policies that allow large operations to expand and drive up farmland prices. Young Farmers says it will continue pushing for changes before the Farm Bill is finalized.
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