USDA Firings and Program Cuts Undermine Conservation Efforts in Iowa
Statement from Iowa Farmers Union President Aaron Lehman regarding the impact of federal funding and staff cuts at the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).
“The recent firing of USDA employees pulls the rug out from underneath farmers and the rural workforce that makes the agency run in Iowa. It is unfair to farmers and USDA employees alike.
We’ve seen a huge demand from farmers willing to invest in conservation to clean up our water, improve our soil health, and provide solutions to other environmental challenges like responding to a changing climate. The resources provided by USDA and the work that USDA staff joined by the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship, Soil and Water Conservation Districts, and partnering organizations like Conservation Districts of Iowa and Pheasants Forever have been very popular with farmers and supported by the entire agricultural community. To fire these ag leaders ready to help farmers and to stop the funding farmers were ready to invest in their farms undermines all of the work Iowa has been doing to support farming, rural development, and improvements to Iowa’s environment.
Farmers are dependent on an important partnership with the USDA. Reliable market research, conservation implementation on the farm, timely farm program payments, farm climate partnerships, food safety, and many other services all rely on a dependable labor force at the USDA.
So many USDA programs, especially conservation and climate programs, rely on the voluntary partnership between farmers and their community institutions. These recent actions betray the trust of farmers and serve to strengthen those who want to destroy conservation programs altogether. Our farmers and our conservation partners deserve better.
Ultimately, these actions lead to a food system that is more costly for consumers while hollowing out our communities of hard-working employees trying to serve farmers, improve our rural landscapes, and build up our communities. Innovation in farming and rural Iowa can not happen by removing investments that make a difference.”###
