Pork Producers Lobby Lawmakers on Foreign Animal Disease, Worker Shortage
Preventing foreign animal diseases, addressing a shortage of agricultural workers and reauthorizing a livestock price reporting law top the list of issues that pork producers will lobby their congressional lawmakers over during the fall Capitol Hill fly-in of the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC).
More than 100 producers from across the country are expected to participate virtually in NPPC’s Legislative Action Conference on Dec. 1-2.
“These are critical but by no means the only issues of concern to U.S. pork producers,” NPPC President Jen Sorenson, communications director for Iowa Select Farms in West Des Moines, Iowa, said in a release. “Failure to address even one of these matters could make it very difficult for hog farmers to continue producing safe, nutritious pork for consumers around the globe. Our fly-in is an opportunity for producers to urge Congress to take action on important issues.”
Fund Foreign Animal Disease Efforts
Producers will urge members of Congress to support funding for efforts to prepare for and prevent foreign animal diseases, particularly African swine fever (ASF). NPPC has requested appropriations for more U.S. Customs and Border Protection agricultural inspectors; for the National Animal Health Laboratory Network, which provides disease surveillance and diagnostic support in cases of large-scale animal disease outbreaks; and for additional staff for USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service’s Veterinary Services, the release said.
Reform H-2A Visa Program
In addition, producers will ask lawmakers to reform the H-2A visa program, which allows temporary, seasonal farm laborers. To address the ongoing labor shortage, the pork industry needs the visa program expanded to year-round agricultural workers, without a cap on the annual number of visas. It also supports providing a pathway to legal status for agricultural workers already in the U.S.
Reauthorize Livestock Mandatory Reporting Act
For the price reporting law, producers need Congress to quickly approve a multi-year reauthorization of the Livestock Mandatory Reporting Act (LMRA) or, at least, pass an extension of it, NPPC said in a release. In late September as part of a short-term funding resolution, Congress extended the LMRA to Dec. 3. The law requires meatpackers to report to USDA the prices they pay for cattle, hogs and lambs and other information. USDA publishes twice-daily reports with pricing information, contracting for purchase, supply and demand conditions for livestock, livestock production and livestock product values.
Ranking Member of the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee John Boozman (R-Ark.) and Chairwoman of the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration and of the Senate Democratic Steering and Outreach Committee Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) will speak to producers during the fly-in as well.
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