54 farm groups press Trump Administration for more grower support amid rising costs

The American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) led a group of 54 farm advocacy groups in dispatching a letter to President Donald Trump detailing the ongoing challenges facing American farmers and rural communities.

According to AFBF and its cohorts, severe weather, high expenses and global uncertainty are hitting farmers from all sides, squeezing them to the breaking point. The group calls on the administration to “build on recent efforts to deliver Farmer Bridge Assistance Program payments and should include meaningful support for all specialty crop, sugar and alfalfa growers.”

Specialty crop advocacy groups that cosigned the letter to President Trump include:

• American Pistachio Growers
• AmericanHort
• California Avocado Commission
• Florida Fruit & Vegetable Growers Association
• Georgia Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association
• International Fresh Produce Association
• National Onion Association
• National Potato Council
• National Watermelon Association
• North American Blueberry Council
• Specialty Crop Farm Bill Alliance
• USApple Association
• USA Pulses
• Washington Winegrowers Association
• Western Growers Association

The letter also addresses the recent closure of the Strait of Hormuz and its impact on fertilizer and fuel prices, stating the closure has worsened the financial strain farmers face and poses significant consequences for the food supply chain in America and around the world.

“We appreciate your longstanding commitment to rural America. Now is the time to ensure that American agriculture can weather this period of extraordinary strain. Without timely assistance, continued losses risk accelerating farm closures, reducing domestic production capacity and weakening the ability of farmers and ranchers across this great nation to provide food, clothes and fuel for the American people.”

You can read the full PDF of the letter to President Trump here.