AreaUnited States of America

Commodity GroupOilseeds, oils and meals

CommodityCrops, livestock products

Date01/12/2018

Policy CategoryProduction

Policy InstrumentAgricultural policy

DescriptionSigned into law a USD 867 billion Farm Bill covering the five-year period 2019–2023. Under the bill, key farm safety net schemes will remain in place, while the country’s domestic food aid programme was renewed without significant changes.

NotesIn December, President Trump signed into law a USD 867 billion Farm Bill covering the five-year period 2019–2023. The bill will continue to fund key farm safety net schemes, while renewing the country’s domestic food aid programme without significant changes. The bill reauthorizes the existing crop insurance and conservation programmes and will fund a set of trade promotion measures as well as research on bioenergy production and organic farming. Farmers will have the option to choose between the Agricultural Risk Coverage and Price Loss Coverage programmes in four out of five years, to make sure the tools they are using are better aligned with their risk management needs. The bill also introduces a number of improvements to both programme prices and yields to enhance the effectiveness of these tools. Furthermore, the marketing loan rates of several crops have been increased to support farmers who need to access low-interest post-harvest financing. The loan rate for soybeans has been raised by 24 percent, while that for groundnuts and ‘minor oilseeds’ has been left unchanged. The current limits on individual farm subsidies have been maintained.