The Farm Bill and Why It Needs Changes - 812 Words

Natural Resource Policy The Farm Bill and Why It Needs Changes The Farm Bill was put into effect in the 1930s during the Great Depression as a way of helping the struggling farmers during the horrible agricultural climate of the 1930s. Recently, however, the USDA (United States Department of Agriculture) and the Farm Bill have become some of the most important yet overlooked policies of today’s government. Sadly, with all of the growth in the government the Farm Bill has been perverted from solely helping farmers and the people directly involved with the agriculture business in general to a multi million-dollar business deal. The Farm Bill needs to be changed back into something that has its focus on agricultural needs by removing SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) and other non-agricultural previsions. I also think the bill should remove subsidies for large companies. SNAP and the Farm Bill The modern Farm Bill, as we know it was introduced in 1938 under the Roosevelt administration as a way to regulate the agricultural market and the public grain trade. Any such program before President Hoover and President Coolidge shot down til this point. The economic struggles of the United States began during the 1930s, and the agricultural communities were hit the hardest. Through this program, the Roosevelt administration started buying surplus crops as a way to regulate the agricultural economy, feed the poor and needy, and stockpile food for feeding the warShow MoreRelatedThe Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Essay1285 Words   |  6 Pagesparticipants to meet their dietary needs (Blumenthal, 2012 pg.50). However, there is a main concern is that SNAP participants are also at risk for developing obesity and other chronic disease. The SNAP program finds that the obesity epidemic is associated with huge economic burdens on medical cost, if not ad dressed at right time. The Farm Bill containing SNAP program was signed into law in February, 2014 after intense debate on its effectiveness and efficiency (Farm Bill, 2014). During the debate, theRead MoreFarm Subsidies Essay1202 Words   |  5 Pageshave an effect on the entire world market. Not to mention that the farm has been booming the last 5 to 10 years. This topic also tends to draw strong opinions in our area in particular due to the large agricultural community in our region. However, even within different states there are many supporters as well as opponents to these government subsidies. To really begin to understand this complex topic a person really needs to understand the basics of agricultural subsidizing. A subsidy isRead MoreA River Of Waste : The Hazardous Truth About Factory Farms1543 Words   |  7 Pagesthe 2009 documentary film, A River of Waste: The Hazardous Truth About Factory Farms directed by Don McCorkell, people can see actual accounts how modern agricultural methods of meat and poultry manufacturing has on the environment and human health. Observing the film, people can view why this matter is immediately necessary. To reduce operation cost and produce surplus amount of animals to meet the need, factory farms stock enormous amounts of animals to be raised for food in a restrained space.Read MoreThe United States Food Stamp Program1708 Words   |  7 Pagesdecades. In the recent years, food stamp benefits have been on a trend of expanding not only the amount of recipients, but also the amount each recipient receives in benefits. Why has the food stamp program become so popular and supported over the years? And what is the fate of SNAP? The analysis of trends of the policy changes and public moods shows that the size of the food stamp program has changed with the shift in America’s attitude towards social welfare. The history of the food stamp programRead MoreFactory Farms in the United States1536 Words   |  7 Pagescows eat grass, don’t they? Not in the United States, where factory farms, also known as confinement farms, are status quo. The average heifer on a confinement farm weighs 1500 pounds2 - around twice as much as its New Zealand counterpart, lives half as long3 and is fed primarily on expensive (relative to grass) grain and corn. The US dairy industry is economically inefficient and environmentally unsustainable: There are too many farms in the West, where conditions are generally drier, and too few inRead MoreCase 3: Bill Thurmond Pig Farm1012 Words   |  5 PagesCase 3 Bill Thurmond Pig Farm Problem: The pig farm that has been doing well for years is now incurring losses with low prices at market. What needs to be done to keep cash flowing so that the farm can keep open until market prices get better? Situation: Strengths- * From 1995 – current 1998 expenses have gone down drastically giving them less overhead. * Generations of farming experience * They are in a cooperative that pays them to farm. * They have timber and real estateRead MoreRich Brother - Loyal to a Fault1351 Words   |  6 Pagesspirituality and bounced from religion to religion. â€Å"The Rich Brother,† begins at the end of Donald’s most recent search for spirituality when he must call his brother, Pete, knowing that Pete cannot deny his brother’s need for help yet again, and asks to be picked up from the communal farm where he had been living. Throughout the story the reader sees numerous examples of Pete’s sense of responsibility toward his brother, his love and his dedication for family; however, Pete’s dominant characteristicRead MoreThe First Mutual Insurance Company1178 Words   |  5 Pagesoldest successful property insurance company. Insurance companies offered safety to their customer that’s why a lot of people subscribed as soon as the Philadelphia Contributionship opened. Now-a-days there are hundreds of insurance companies and they all cover differ ent aspects of our daily lives. One of the most successful insurance companies in the United States is State Farm. State Farm was founded in 1922 by a retired farmer George J Mecherle. At first this insurance company specialized onlyRead MoreAnimal Welfare Act Of 1966. Before 1966, Almost Of Animals,1660 Words   |  7 Pagesguinea pigs, as well as rabbits. This federal law ensured the safety of the owners as well as the pets. Later in 1970, the act had gotten expanded to just the earlier mentioned animals, but also to other warm-blooded animals that were being used as farm animals or even used in circuses, carnivals, and zoos. Now came 1976, which now expanded to animal fighting ventures, this act of protecting animals was now named as the Animal Welfare Act of 1966. During 1976, the government expanded again the exceptionsRead MoreThe Relationship Between Land And The Farm When Permaculture Techniques Are Incorporated Into The System1275 Words   |  6 PagesThe topic I will address throughout this project focuses on the relationship between the land and the farm when permaculture techniques are incorporated into the system. Moreover, we will question if permaculture, in its entirety, is a viable/economically justifiable method of farming. The reality is that for the past one hundred years farming has grown towards primarily annual crops and monoculture practices. With the mindset of â€Å"producing as much food as possible† us agriculturists start to deprive