Food Law Leaders Call for Systems Change through 2023 Farm Bill

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The Farm Bill Law Enterprise (FBLE) recently published five reports that seek to infuse new ideas and amplify calls to action ahead of negotiations for the next farm bill. The reports focus on five areas of action for the forthcoming bill: Climate & Conservation, Equity in Agricultural Production & Governance, Farm Viability, Farmworkers, and Food Access & Nutrition.

FBLE is a national partnership of law school programs working toward a farm bill that reflects the long-term needs of our society, including economic opportunity and stability; public health and nutrition; climate change mitigation and adaptation; public resources stewardship; and racial and socioeconomic justice. New farm bills only happen every five years, and the current farm bill, passed in 2018, expires in September 2023. While legislative hearings on some farm bill programs have already begun, further hearings as well as the drafting and negotiation of the bill are anticipated to begin in the new year for the legislation to pass in 2023.

“As we focus national attention on strategies to address hunger, nutrition, and health through the White House Strategy released last week, the farm bill will a key pathway for reforming our food system,” says Emily Broad Leib, FLPC’s Director and an author on FBLE’s reports. “We’ve come together as legal scholars, practitioners, and students to think critically about the role farm bill policy can play in creating a food system that is equitable and sustainable.”

Each new report by FBLE outlines goals and recommendations, with specific legislative actions that should be taken to achieve those objectives. The recommendations are designed to build on recent momentum to make equity a core value in USDA programming, uplift the voice of workers in the farming system, ensure access to nutritious food for all Americans, support the viability of small and mid-sized farms and local food systems, and make the U.S. agricultural system part of the climate change solution. The reports can be found at Farm Bill Law.org.

“The Farm Bill is such critical legislation, shaping the experiences of food consumers, food producers, and food system workers alike,” says Margot Pollans, Professor of Law at the Elisabeth Haub School of Law and Faculty Director of the Pace Food Law Center. “But for such a long time it did not get the attention that it deserved from the legal academic community. I’m honored that so many Pace students and faculty are contributing to this important effort to correct this blindspot and to offer ideas for a more sustainable and equitable food future.”

FBLE’s recommendations aim to provide a starting point to generate further discussion about the best solutions for achieving common goals. Many stakeholders, communities, and organizations will have thoughts, constructive critique, and perspectives to offer that should ultimately shape the policies enacted in the farm bill. FBLE is eager to collaborate with other stakeholders to further develop and refine these ideas and set priorities for the coming farm bill cycle.

In addition to these Reports, FBLE maintains educational materials and an active blog on its website. FBLE will be tracking the bill’s development and progress on the website through its passage.

FBLE members include law school programs with expertise in food, agriculture, public health, and environmental law, including: Drake University Law School, Agricultural Law Center; Duke Law School, Environmental Law and Policy Clinic; Harvard Law School, Emmett Environmental Law and Policy Clinic; Harvard Law School, Food Law and Policy Clinic; Harvard Law School, Health Law and Policy Clinic; Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University, Food Law Center; UCLA School of Law, Resnick Center for Food Law and Policy; University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law, Environmental Law Program; and Vermont Law and Graduate School, Center for Agriculture and Food Systems. The Harvard Law School, Food Law and Policy Clinic coordinates and leads the initiative.

The Pace Food Law Center at the Elisabeth Haub School of Law supports legal services and advocacy, academic scholarship, and student learning. The Center’s legal services and advocacy projects support the transition to a just and sustainable food system by providing direct legal services to small farm and food businesses and related nonprofits through the Food and Farm Business Law Clinic, offering focused legal training, and advocating for systemic policy changes at the local, state, regional, and federal levels. The Center supports the development of food law scholarship, seeking to advance understanding of the role of law in shaping the food system. And in all its programming the Center offers opportunities for students to engage in food law, including through coursework, clinical work, externship placements, career counseling, and research opportunities.