Ag News

Ossoff, Bishop introduce bill to protect family farms

On Aug. 6, U.S. Senator Jon Ossoff and Rep. Sanford Bishop, Jr. (GA-02) introduced the Protecting Our Produce Act to boost resources and support for Georgia specialty crop growers facing unfairly priced imports.

“Georgia family farms are getting buried by unfair crop imports from South and Central America,” Ossoff said. “That’s why we are introducing this bill — to ensure Georgia’s family farms and rural communities can thrive.”

The bill would establish a five-year pilot program to provide support for certain specialty crop producers — blueberries, squash, bell pepper, cucumber, or asparagus — when a crop’s national average market price (effective price) falls below its five-year average price (reference price), if the difference is caused by imports.

The bill, which can be read here, would provide recovery payments to producers of seasonal and perishable crops who experience low prices caused by imports.

“Georgia’s farmers thrive when there is fair competition and Congress can do its part to protect them from unfairly priced imports,” said Congressman Bishop. “Not only is this bill important for the financial stability and security of our nation’s farmers, but also to help protect our supply chain and ensure Americans can get affordable, healthy food closer to home.”

In May, U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) Katherine Tai and the USDA USDA  established a Seasonal and Perishable Agricultural Products Advisory Committee to help ensure Georgia farmers are at the table to address unfair trade practices by Mexican importers.

“Georgia’s fruit and vegetable farmers continue to face an un level playing field from rising levels of imported produce. This has resulted in our nation’s first agricultural trade deficit and will ultimately increase our reliance on other countries for fresh, healthy produce. This program can be a game changer for our growers helping level the playing field and ensuring a sustainable future for farmers while providing greater access to healthy foods for all,” said Chris Butts, Georgia Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association (GFVGA) Executive Vice President.

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