The U.S. Farmer in the International Food Situation

Excerpts from the report: Farmers across this Nation have seen terrific change over the past several years both in their fortunes and in the role they play in the international food situation. U.S. agriculture has moved from limited production to full production, from reliance on price supports to a market price orientation, from large government stocks to virtually none, and toward a free market for farm goods—with no more embargoes. With this new independence for the U.S. farmer has come a new interdependence. Never before has the fate of a farmer in the steppes of Russia been tied so closely to the fortune of a farmer in the Great Plains of the United States. For the short term, at least, this interdependence with the course of agriculture and food supplies elsewhere in the world spells uncertainty for farmers here. The government has withdrawn its controls over the agricultural marketplace, and farmers have generally applauded that change. But tradeoffs are involved. One is the uncertainty that that withdrawal implies. Tradeoffs like this one—between freedom and uncertainty for farmers in the marketplace will be weighed in this year's debate on new farm legislation, as the course of future government programs for agriculture is decided.