Food Policy

“Something is wrong when profits of agribusiness corporations skyrocket, but farmers must find off-farm jobs to survive or, worse, are forced to sell their farms. I believe the United States must focus on farm policies that benefit family farmers, provide our nation with wholesome food, protect our natural resources, and restore our rural communities” - Dennis

Dennis’ farm policy favors independent and family-owned farms. He supports a national ban on packer ownership of livestock, and numerous new incentives for farmers to convert to sustainable and organic farming and ranching techniques.

America depends upon a rich supply of diverse foods at a good price. Our farmers work long hours, often under unsafe conditions, for very little income to provide this needed food supply. The farmer must borrow heavily to put in his/her crop, maintain and upgrade equipment, and buy inputs such as genetically modified organism (GMO) seed and petroleum-based fertilizers and pesticides, costing hundreds of thousands of dollars. Then the farmer must hope that the grain markets reach a level where the crop can be sold at a profit.

The typical conventional farm requires vast acreage to be profitable, and that area requires huge equipment to plow, plant, and harvest. The size of the farms also requires farms to become highly specialized in order to avoid losing money.

The incentives in place have made farms become industrialized, which has brought problems such as soil and water pollution, erosion, unlabeled GMO foods, and dangerous working conditions.

The USDA's policies for decades have given the U.S. farmer the options of getting big or getting out, which has destroyed our farm base and rural communities. Under current policy, the small family farmer has become an endangered species. There are more prisoners in the U.S. penal system than farmers growing crops.

NAFTA and the WTO have made things far worse for the U.S. farmer by opening up markets that can produce commodities far more cheaply than can the U.S. farmer.

Beyond the individual farm, the detrimental impacts of industrial farming affect the health and well-being of everyone in our suburbs and cities. Runoff of farm chemicals and the manure runoff from confined animal feeding operations (CAFOs) or factory farms has dramatically adverse effects on our streams, rivers, and drinking water.  Outbreaks of food contaminated with pathogens like E. coli and salmonella continue to be traced back to factory farming of meat and crops. Antibiotics in animal meats are being consumed in large quantities by our population, making us immune to the restorative effects of these important drugs. 

We need to implement new safety standards in meatpacking and food processing.

We need to strengthen and enforce air and water quality laws to safeguard rural communities from factory farm pollution. The number of animal units per site would be limited to a level that allows for on-site manure management and assurance of food safety, and local communities would be given control over the siting of industrial livestock operations.

Programs that reward family farmers for protecting the environment would be expanded, and funding to help small independent farmers qualify for organic certification would be increased.

To support these small farms, we must also initiate a major new program of investment in rural America, putting thousands to work rebuilding invaluable public assets such as schools, hospitals, libraries, swimming pools, and parks.

Teachers, doctors, veterinarians, and other important service providers should be offered incentives to work in under-served areas. A variety of support mechanisms and financial incentives would be given to local businesses, so that locally owned businesses have a fair chance to compete.
 
Agricultural and animal issues are both political and personal for Dennis and Elizabeth. They are both vegans who care deeply about nutrition and believe our agricultural system is key to reforming ballooning healthcare costs. They made this lifestyle change many years ago, because they consider all life on our Earth to be sacred.