Sugar Producer

22 SUGAR PRODUCER | JUNE/JULY 2022 Every five years, Congress considers a new Farm Bill, setting the course for our nation's agricultural and food policies, including U.S. sugar policy. It's an important discussion, and one that impacts our sugar farm families, workers, and the communities that rely on a healthy domestic sugar industry. Because the last Farm Bill was passed in 2018, the next Farm Bill is up for consideration in 2023. The American Sugar Alliance (ASA) is already working to ensure Gearing Up The American Sugar Alliance prepares for the next Farm Bill FROM THE ASA By Rob Johansson, Director of Economics and Policy Analysis that Congress maintains a strong U.S. sugar policy in the legislation. U.S. sugar policy has enjoyed bipartisan support from both sides of the aisle. However, there is still work to be done to educate new members of Congress about the importance of the policy and how it works. Importantly, because U.S. sugar policy is based on loans repaid with interest, it is designed to cost taxpayers nothing. This structure ensures U.S. sugar policy serves American farmers, consumers, food manufacturers and taxpayers alike. Much of that education has been undertaken by the growers who donated their time earlier this year to meet with congressional offices and share their perspective from the farm. However, I was also honored to testify this spring before the House committee on agriculture on behalf of our industry. In my written and spoken testimony, I underscored the strategic importance of The U.S. sugar industry serves as the backbone of local economies in both rural and urban regions while keeping America supplied with an essential food ingredient. American sugar production, especially as uncertain global supply chains and other challenges have made clear the dangers of relying on foreign suppliers. In short, my message to Congress was that the U.S. sugar industry serves as the backbone of local economies in both rural and urban regions while keeping America supplied with an essential food ingredient. The COVID-19 pandemic is an important example of how reliable supplies of sugar kept food manufacturing lines operating and grocery store shelves stocked. The investments that our industry has made in production and supply chain resiliency helped ensure reliable, just-in-time delivery of sugar to our nation's households and food companies during the peak of the pandemic. However, as the economic disruption from the pandemic begins to dissipate, there remain significant bottlenecks in the supply chain for inputs needed for this year's crop as well as for continued deliveries to our customers. Those bottlenecks are raising prices not just for sugar imports, but also for inputs needed to grow our crops, and are adding to the costs of our just-in-time delivery system for providing adequate supplies of sugar to our customers. Much like other agricultural sectors, sugar producers are feeling the pressure of rising production costs and inflation while loan rates for raw cane sugar and refined beet sugar have not kept pace. As they look toward the next Farm Bill, Congress will need to examine how the farm safety net could be updated to reflect actual costs of procuring inputs, producing a crop, and delivering agricultural commodities to customers. Sustainability also remains a key issue for Congress. In my testimony and in follow- up questions submitted to the committee, I explained how America's sugar industry proudly meets some of the highest labor and environmental standards in the world, and how we are always striving to improve even further. In fact, over the past 20 years, American sugar farmers have increased production in the U.S. by 16 percent, while land used for sugar production has fallen by 11 percent. Improvements in seed genetics, field machinery, and efficiencies in sugar processing facilities and refineries have all contributed to those improvements. There is still much to be done before the 2023 Farm Bill, but it is my hope that in the coming year, members of Congress will visit sugar farms and processors throughout the country to see firsthand how U.S. sugar policy and the Farm Bill support America's sugar farming families and workers, as well as the communities where they live and work. that WTO reform will be front and center on the agenda. n

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