Minnesota Farm Bureau President Dan Glessing says the new farm bill text is very similar to what was voted on in the House Agriculture Committee just over a year ago. “We had GT (House Agriculture Committee Chair Glenn Thompson) on with the 50 state presidents in our monthly call and he’s got the 23rd, 24th, and 25th of February slated for markup in committee,” said Glessing. “Getting back to the bill itself, there’s improvement for specialty crops, inclusion of a solution to Proposition 12, which is the animal space requirements/interstate commerce issue in California and a solution, revamping of the food aid program.” If the farm bill passes in the House, Glessing said it would pressure the Senate to act. “The ranking member on the Senate ag committee, Minnesota Senator Klobuchar, is running for governor and if she’s successful in that, she may not want the fact that the farm bill didn’t get done under her leadership.”
