Does Farm Bill Reveal U.S. 'Double Standards'?
Critics of the newly passed U.S. Farm Bill say the measure will hurt poor farmers in the rest of the world.
The $285-billion Farm Bill, which passed into law in May, increases crop subsidies, boosts conservation spending and expands the food stamp program. It also guarantees annual payments to farmers and pays farmers for any crops they sell for less than the federally regulated minimum price.
But international agencies – and even members of the president’s own administration – railed against the measure.
Deputy U.S. Agriculture Secretary Chuck Conner said the measure “heads in the wrong direction in terms of our international obligations,” and expects trade partners “to protest in every way they can." Australia is already making plans to challenge the Bill through the World Trade Organization.
Oxfam America says that by encouraging large companies to overproduce, U.S. government subsidies lead to dumping – selling surplus goods in international markets at prices under the cost of production. The humanitarian agency says this undermines local production, threatens millions of farmers worldwide and clearly violates WTO rules.
Even before this Farm Bill, U.S. farm programs were criticized internationally for their trade-distorting subsidies. This bill further undermines our moral authority. Horst Koehler, an official with the International Monetary Fund, criticized the U.S. for its "double standards" about open markets.
Our hypocrisy not only damages our reputation, but makes the EU and other large exporters less likely to adopt the kind of policies that will help the world’s farmers.
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facts?
Um...just an FYI, Bush vetoed this but the Congress overrode the veto.
A Second Look
You are right, I made an error when I set up my links. I did the historical research for perspective. The previous Farm Bills have been very influential in both the drafting of this bill and the international reaction to it. The essence of my comments is correct: the current Farm Bill is sparking international controversy.
If you would like more information, you can search Reuters.com's coverage of the Farm Bill for the most recent articles.
New Press and Statements from the U.N. - "too little, too late"
An article by World Press today discussed the U.S. Farm Bill with new quotes from the U.N. discussing how the U.S. Farm Bill negatively impacts developing countries and small farmers around the world.
U.S. Farm Bill Food Aid Package Blunders
In an article by Business Week this week, critics of the farm bill discuss the inefficiencies of U.S. food aid.
The U.S. earmarks about $2 billion per year on food for the world's hungry, more than any other country. Nearly two-thirds of that, however, is spent on items other than food. The $290 billion farm bill, like others before it, requires commodities be bought in the U.S. and shipped to needy countries. And as shipping and delivery costs have risen, the amount of actual food the U.S. sends overseas has fallen dramatically—by 52% between 2001 and 2006—according to one government report. The situation is even more dire this year, due to sky-high prices for commodities like wheat and corn, as well as for fuel.
With the gravity of the food crisis, it would be nice if the U.S. government did more than give lip service to the issue.
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