WAWG
This letter to the editor appeared in the Spokesman-Review on Oct. 19
I visited Washington, D.C., in July to speak with lawmakers about protecting access to the crop protection tools my farm and so many others rely on to grow food efficiently and affordably. The conversation since those meetings has veered far off course.
A wave of misinformation has emerged around Section 453 of the House appropriations bill. This provision simply reinforces trust in a science-based process to establish the product labels we farmers use to do our job. This provision is needed because some states’ actions threaten the availability of these crop protection tools.
These products are essential. Without them, input costs could double, yields could drop, and many of us would have to return to more expensive and less sustainable farming practices. That hurts not just farmers, but consumers, too, in the form of higher prices at the grocery store.
Chairman Thompson’s commitment to including language that protects crop protection tools in the Farm Bill is encouraging, but Congress must act to give the agriculture community certainty. We need policies guided by science and real-world experience – not activists who don’t understand the realities of modern agriculture.
Farming is already full of uncertainties. Losing access to proven tools because of misinformed attacks shouldn’t be one of them.
Gil Crosby
Fairfield