GFB新闻杂志

GFB Commodity Conference speakers upbeat about agriculture

发布于2021年9月8日上午12:00

文/杰伊·斯通 & 詹妮弗·惠塔克

乔治亚州农场局 held its 2021 Commodity Conference at the UGA Tifton Campus Aug. 12. Speakers gave members of the organization’s 20 commodity advisory committees updates on a variety of ag issues and attendees had a chance to talk to UGA ag researchers about projects they are conducting to help farmers. GFB kicked off its policy development process as the committees reviewed the organization's state and federal policy pertaining to their specific commodities.

农民应该投票 & vax

Georgia’s ag economy should remain stable according to State Fiscal Economist Jeffrey 多尔夫曼. He said Georgia’s overall economy has fared relatively well since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

多尔夫曼, a UGA professor of agricultural and applied economics, emphasized that farmers need to vote and get vaccinated.

多尔夫曼说:“选举很重要. “If you want to know what’s going to affect the type of regulations you’re going to face in farming, if you don’t want that ditch on your farm to become a water of the United States again, 然后你们要在2022年和2024年投票.”

He also encouraged Georgians to get the COVID-19 vaccine. “The number one thing you can do is get vaccinated, wear a mask and socially distance,” 多尔夫曼 said. “If we can stay healthy, then our economy is going to go gangbusters, and we’re going to be fine.”

多尔夫曼 said farmers could expect continued low interest rates, slight decreases in energy prices and continued “mid-level” commodity prices.

多尔夫曼 pointed to key indicators as gauges for the state’s economy since March 2020 when the pandemic hit. Thanks to federal stimulus payments and increased unemployment benefits, 居民收入基本稳定, 人们也省了钱.

Americans went from saving approximately 7% of their income to about a third and have amassed $6 trillion in sav- ings. 格鲁吉亚人有大约2000亿美元的储蓄.

多尔夫曼 said full return to normal will take time because hiring and training employees takes time. 由于工人换工作，情况变得更加复杂. 填补一个职位会留下另一个空缺.

Ag有很好的保护故事

农业保护的故事, American Farm Bureau Senior Director of Congressional Relations Andrew Walmsley said, 哪一个是农民应该骄傲的. Farmers have been doing their part to conserve natural resources, 随着气候变化政策讨论的继续, 农业占有重要地位.

从20世纪40年代末开始, American agriculture has increased its production 287% while farm inputs have remained relatively flat. Walmsley said factoring in agriculture’s small share of greenhouse gas emissions and its sizeable contribution to carbon capture, 银吸收的温室气体比它产生的温室气体要多.

“As we go forward in policy discussions or private market developments, how do you shrink [emissions] while increasing [carbon capture] and make sure we remain sustainable?沃姆斯利说. “For me, sustainable for agriculture is economic viability. 让别人破产对我们没有好处.”

 He said there are more than 140 million acres in the U.S. enrolled in conservation programs under the 2018 farm bill, equal to the total land area of California and New York combined.

“就是这类项目, 自愿和激励为基础的, that will make us successful in this climate debate going forward,沃姆斯利说.

沃姆斯利回顾了食品的发展 & 农业气候联盟(FACA), 其中包括70个农业项目, 食物, 林业和环境利益相关者组织. The alliance developed a set of recommendations to guide the development of federal climate policy, including the Growing Climate Solutions Act passed by the U.S. 参议院和美国正在考虑中.S. 房子.

“We were trying figure out how to shape policy in Washington that benefits the environment but also protects farmers and ranchers,沃姆斯利说, 谁一直在积极参与FACA的讨论. “我不得不说, 在我们提出的40项政策建议中, 它们都符合农业局的政策. 所以, we’ve got environmental groups helping advocate for Farm Bureau policy and opening doors to some offices that we traditionally wouldn’t work with.”

Carbon markets are being developed as a part of federal climate policy. AFBF has developed a primer on sustainability and carbon markets, which can be found online at www.fb.http://marketintel.com/www.fb.org/land/sustainability-in-ag.

迪基和哈珀讨论州立法问题

乔治亚州众议院农业委员会主席，众议员. 罗伯特·迪基 & Georgia Senate Natural Resources/Environment Committee Chairman Sen. Tyler Harper discussed Georgia legislative issues during a panel discussion with GFB President Tom McCall.

哈珀讨论了参议院260号法案, which pertains to soil amendments applied to fields and 房子 Bill 693, which gives the right-of-way to farm equipment traveling on state roads when they encounter other vehicles.

Dickey praised GFB for the decades of work it has done to address tax issues Georgia farmers face. He encouraged GFB members to support a constitutional amendment that will be on the November 2022 ballot proposing family farms, 它们已经合并了, get the same ad valorem tax exemption on farm equipment that they qualified for before merging.

农业专员:交易会将会举行

Georgia Agriculture Commissioner Gary Black thanked Farm Bureau for its long-time support of the Georgia National Fair and the Georgia National Fairgrounds & Agricenter. Commissioner Black said the Georgia National Fair will be held Oct. 7-17.

“乔治亚种植大楼将会开放, and the Baby Barn will be showcasing the miracle of birth again for Georgia families,布莱克说.

Black encouraged farmers to represent agriculture in their local communities.

“I would suggest to you that it’s never been more important to speak out for agriculture,布莱克说. “It may be representing ag at your county commission meetings and at your local schools.”

-GFB -