The Changing Landscape of Farm Labor Conditions in the United States: What the Future Holds and How to Prepare for It (Session Presentation Slides)

The symposium aimed to convene and develop a network of researchers and stakeholders to engage in a productive discussion focused on farm labor issues. A primary goal of the symposium was to strengthen and enhance ongoing farm labor research, focusing on four key themes: 1. Trends in the farm labor force—including presentations on worker migration and the H-2A Temporary Agricultural Program ---- 2. Labor costs—including presentations on the effects of H-2A AEWR and overtime laws on farmworkers ---- 3. Farm worker conditions—including presentations on a) workplace safety; b) effects of climate change on worker health; c) workplace harassment ---- 4. Workforce development—trends in training current farmworkers and a new generation to develop, operate, and repair new technologies in the field and lead packing operations

Bioenergy, safety net tools are producers’ top priorities for next farm bill

Bioenergy and the structure of safety net programs are of high interest to farmers and ranchers as the next farm bill is debated, according to more than 15,000 farmers and ranchers in 27 states surveyed by Farm Foundation’s National Public Policy Education Committee (NPPEC). Producers ranked renewable energy, enhancing opportunities for small and beginning farmers, and assuring a safe and affordable food supply as their top three goals for the next farm bill. “All the goals presented to producers to rank were decades-old rationales for farm programs with the exception of bioenergy, an issue that has seen explosive growth in recent years,” says Dr. Brad Lubben of the University of Nebraska, who chaired the task force conducting the National Agricultural, Food and Public Policy Preference Survey. Bioenergy production incentives, followed closely by food safety programs, head the list of programs producers would target for new or reallocated funding. When asked to rank existing programs that should continue to receive funding, farmers and ranchers put disaster assistance programs at the top of the list, followed closely by other safety net tools and some conservation programs

Policy Issues in the Changing Structure of the Food System

In an effort to stimulate the discussion of structural changes occurring in the food system and the policy issues pertaining to them, Farm Foundation sponsored a preconference at the 2000 meeting of the American Agricultural Economics Association (AAEA). The workshop, "Policy Issues in the Changing Structure of the Food System," was held July 29, 2000, in Tampa, Florida, prior to the AAEA Annual Meetings. Conference cosponsors included the Economic Research Service; Exten­sion Section, AAEA; Food and Agricultural Marketing Policy Section, AAEA; and the Council on Food, Agricultural and Resource Economics (C-FARE)