[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 59 (Tuesday, May 12, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4711-S4712]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 THE AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH, EXTENSION AND EDUCATION REFORM ACT OF 1998

  Mr. FEINGOLD. Mr. President, today, the Senate passed the conference 
agreement on S. 1150, the Agricultural Research, Extension, and 
Education Reform Act of 1998. I am pleased that this important 
legislation, containing several amendments I authored, has seen its way 
to the Senate floor for proper and overdue consideration and passage.
  Mr. President, the agricultural provisions of this bill are important 
for all farmers but I am especially proud of the provisions targeted to 
support our endangered small farmers.
  Mr. President, this country is facing a national farming crisis. Day 
after day, season after season, we are losing small farms at an 
alarming rate. In 1980, there were 45,000 dairy farms in Wisconsin. In 
1997, there are only 24,000 dairy farms. That is a loss of more than 3 
dairy farms a day-everyday for 17 years. And it does not begin to 
measure the human cost to families driven from the land. As small farms 
disappear, we are witnessing the emergence of larger agricultural 
operations. This trend toward fewer but larger dairy operations is 
mirrored in most States throughout the Nation.
  Mr. President, the economic losses associated with the reduction in 
the number of small farms go well beyond the impact on the individual 
farm families who must wrench themselves from the land. The reduction 
in farm numbers has hurt their neighbors as well and deprived the 
merchants on the main streets of their towns of many lifelong 
customers. For many of the rural communities of Wisconsin, small 
family-owned farms are the key component of the community. They provide 
economic and sound stability. They are good people and we need a system 
in which their farms are viable and their work can be fairly rewarded.
  Many feel that basic research is a necessary and underutilized tool 
that can help to save this dying breed of farmers. There have been 
plenty of Federal investments in agricultural research, past and 
present, focusing almost solely on the needs of larger scale 
agricultural producers-neglecting the specific research needs of small 
producers. This research bias has hamstrung small farmers, depriving 
them of the tools they need to adapt to changes in farming and the 
marketplace and accelerating the trend toward increased concentration.
  To address this concern, I worked with the conference committee to 
include a provision which authorizes a coordinated program of research, 
extension, and education to improve the viability of small- and medium-
size dairy and livestock operations. Among the research projects the 
Secretary is authorized to conduct are: Research, development, and on-
farm education, low-cost production facilities, management systems and 
genetics appropriate for these small and medium operations, research 
and extension on management intensive grazing systems which reduce feed 
costs and improve farm profitability, research and extension on 
integrated crop and livestock systems that strengthen the competitive 
position of small- and medium-size operations, economic analyses and 
feasibility studies to identify new marketing opportunities for small- 
and medium-size producers, technology assessment that compares the 
technological resources of large specialized producers with the 
technological needs of small- and medium-size dairy and livestock 
operations, and research to identify the specific research and 
education needs of these small operations.
  The provision allows the Secretary to carry out this new program 
using existing USDA funds, facilities and technical expertise. Dairy 
and livestock producers should not be forced to become larger in order 
to remain competitive. Bigger is not necessarily better. And in fact, 
M. President, expansion is often counterproductive for small 
operations, requiring them to take on even greater debt. Farmers need 
more help in determining other methods of maintaining long-term 
profitability. For example, small dairy farmers may find adoption of 
management-intensive grazing systems, combined with a diversified 
cropping operation a profitable alternative to expansion. But there has 
been far too little federally funded research devoted to alternative 
livestock production systems. Small producers need more Federal 
research and extension activity devoted to the development of these 
alternatives. This amendment is a good first step in establishing the 
Federal research commitment to help develop and promote production and 
marketing systems that specifically address the needs of small 
producers.
  Using research dollars to help maintain the economic viability of 
small- and medium-size dairy and livestock operations has benefits 
beyond those gained by farmers and the communities in which they 
reside. Keeping a large number of small operations in production can 
provide environmental benefits as well. As livestock operations expand 
their herd size without a corresponding increase in cropping acreage, 
manure storage and management practices become more costly and more 
burdensome for the operator and raise additional regulatory concerns 
associated with runoff and water quality among State and Federal 
regulators. Research that helps dairy and livestock operators remain 
competitive and profitable without dramatic expansion will help 
minimize these concerns.

[[Page S4712]]

  Mr. President, also incorporated into the bill is language requiring 
the Secretary to fund research on the competitiveness and viability of 
small- and medium-size farms under the Initiative for Future 
Agriculture and Food Systems--a new research program authorized by S. 
1150 and funded at a total of $600 million for fiscal years 1999 
through 2002. With the inclusion of my amendment, the Secretary is 
directed to make grants for research projects addressing the viability 
of small- and medium-size farming operations with funding made 
available under the Initiative in fiscal years 1999-2002. This 
amendment ensures that the research needs of small dairy, livestock, 
and cropping operations will be addressed under the substantial new 
funding provided for agricultural research in this bill.
  Finally, Mr. President, the conference committee also accepted 
important language regarding precision agriculture. Precision 
agriculture is a system of farming that uses very site-specific 
information on soil nutrient needs and presence of plant pests, often 
gathered using advanced technologies such as global positioning 
systems, high performance image processing, and software systems to 
determine the specific fertilizer, pesticide and other input needs of a 
farmer's cropland. This technology may have the benefit of lowering 
farm production costs and increase profitability by helping the 
producer reduce agricultural inputs by applying them only where needed. 
In addition, reducing agricultural inputs may minimize the impact of 
crop production on wildlife and the environment. While precision 
agriculture, generally defined, encompasses a broad range of techniques 
from high-technology satellite imaging systems to manual soil sampling, 
it is most frequently discussed in terms of the use of capital 
intensive advanced technologies.
  Precision agriculture may result in production efficiencies and 
improved profitability for some farms, yet many in agriculture are 
concerned that, because of the capital intensive nature of precision 
agriculture systems, this new technology will not be applicable or 
accessible to small or highly diversified farms. It is unclear whether 
precision agriculture services, even if provided by input suppliers, 
will be available at affordable rates to small farms. Furthermore, some 
observers are concerned that private firms may find that marketing 
efforts directed at small farms are not lucrative enough and thus may 
avoid efforts to apply the technology to small operations.
  In addition to concerns about the applicability and accessibility of 
precision agriculture to small farms, many are concerned that precision 
agriculture may not be the most appropriate production system for small 
farms given the costs of acquiring new technology or contracting for 
additional services. There may be other production systems, such as 
integrated whole farm crop, livestock, and resource management systems, 
that allow small farmers to reduce input costs, improve profitability, 
and minimize environmental impacts of agricultural production that are 
more appropriate for smaller operations.
  To address this concern, accepted language allows USDA to fund 
studies evaluating whether precision agriculture technologies are 
applicable or accessible to small- and medium-sized farms. The 
amendment also allows USDA to conduct research on methods to improve 
the applicability of precision agriculture to these operations. It is 
critical that USDA's research investment in this new technology not 
exclude the needs of small farmers. If it does, this new research 
program could ultimately affect the structure of agriculture, 
potentially providing disproportionate advantages to large scale 
farming operations, accelerating the trend to fewer and larger farms. 
My amendment will allow USDA to conduct research on low cost precision 
agriculture systems that do not require significant financial 
investments by farmers and that may be more appropriate to small or 
highly diversified farming operations.
  Mr. President, I appreciate the cooperation of the chairman, Mr. 
Lugar, and the ranking member, Mr. Harkin, of the Agriculture Committee 
and their staff in addressing the important research needs of small- 
and medium-size farms by maintaining these amendments during conference 
committee consideration of this bill.
  These amendments will ensure that research money is directed at the 
interests of the small farmer providing the tools to make these 
operations viable to survive the riggers of farming in the next 
century.

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