The passage of the 2024 Farm Bill is on delay. Congress has until September 30 to finish the 2024 Farm Bill but disagreements are standing in the way. The U. S. Senate AG Chair, Debbie Stabenow, says she would rather continue putting off the Farm Bill than strike a deal with the Republicans to limit climate funding and social safety net programs. Adding she would prefer just extending the policies of the 2018 Farm Bill and not go backwards on feeding people and funding climate conservation.
One major sticking point has been in Congress where they were fighting over the budget for USDA and FDA. Advocates are pushing for enough funding to keep the supplemental Women’s, Infants and Children program, known as WIC, intact without imposing waiting lists or slashing benefits. In trade the Republicans want to establish a SNAP-Choice pilot program in five states where SNAP benefits could only be used for ‘nutrient dense’ foods aligned with dietary guidelines, which means no soda, candy and most processed foods. An increase of one billion dollars of funding for WIC passed out of the Senate.
