As the 2023 Farm Bill process continues, a bipartisan group of House Agriculture Committee members met with farmers, ranchers, foresters, processors, nutrition groups, and other stakeholders during a series of events in Waco, Texas.
Throughout the day, the message delivered by Committee members echoed a common theme: the farm bill will bipartisan, bicameral, on time, and highly effective.
The day-long series of events included a visit to Ranly Veterinary & Cattle Company, where Members met with the eponymous owner and operator, Jared Ranly, who led a tour of his cattle backgrounding operation and provided insights into his experiences and those of his clients relating to growing feed, cattle markets, animal disease traceability, and the effects of increasingly common severe weather events on the land and livestock.
At a farm bill roundtable hosted by the Texas Farm Bureau at their Waco headquarters, Committee members including Chairman GT Thompson (PA-15) and freshman Democratic member Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett (TX-30) heard from a wide range of industry associations regarding their farm bill priorities, including preserving and improving crop insurance.
The day's events culminated in farm bill listening session at the Extraco Event Center in Waco. The event was attended by a broad spectrum of industry stakeholders and advocates, ranging from independent farmers to non-profits working to address hunger and poverty.
"When you talk about SNAP, you talk about Ag, and guess what? We do a lot of Ag in Texas," said Congresswoman Crockett at the farm bill roundtable, emphasizing the need to take a holistic approach to the farm bill and the importance of preserving and improving the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
Her remarks echoed Chairman Thompson, who at the Texas Farm Bureau roundtable said, "Neighbors help neighbors in need, and that's what the nutrition title does."
