Animal Agriculture Issues in the 107th Congress: A Retrospective (CRS Report for Congress)
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| Release Date |
March 14, 2003 |
| Report Number |
RL31788 |
| Report Type |
Report |
| Authors |
Jerry Heykoop, Resources, Science, and Industry Division |
| Source Agency |
Congressional Research Service |
Summary:
A variety of animal agriculture issues, including prices, the impact of consolidation in the meat
production/packing industry, trade, and the environmental impacts of large feedlots, generated
interest in the 107th Congress.
The farm bill ( P.L. 107-171 ; H.R. 2646 ), signed by the President on May 13, 2002,
contained several provisions affecting animal agriculture, including protections for contract growers,
disaster assistance, required country-of-origin labeling for consumer meat products, and increased
funding for conservation purposes.
USDA announced on September 19, 2002, that it would provide $752 million in special funds
for a new Livestock Compensation Program. In early December 2002, total funding was increased
to $937 million. The program was to compensate livestock producers experiencing severe 2001 and
2002 feed and pasture losses.
Checkoff programs, under which producers are required to fund market promotion and research
activities, continued to face legal challenges. In particular, the beef and pork checkoff programs
were the subject of court challenges by segments of the industry who oppose them.
Concerns about the impact of consolidation in the livestock industry and the agricultural sector
overall, spurred legislative interest. In the farm bill, a Senate provision banning packer ownership
of livestock was dropped in conference, but the issue may resurface in future legislative proposals.
The FY2001 USDA appropriations law ( P.L. 106-387 ) contained a mandatory price reporting
provision that required large meat packers to report prices they pay for cattle and hogs, among other
provisions. The provision was implemented on April 2, 2001, but problems arose with reporting of
prices. USDA implemented changes to fix those problems and increased the frequency of reporting.
On August 23, 2002, USDA announced that Russia had lifted a ban on U.S. poultry imports that
had been in place since March 10, 2002. The ban stemmed from Russian concerns over antibiotics
in feed and the use of chlorinated water during processing. Disputes continued with the European
Union over its barriers to U.S. meat and poultry imports.
On February 12, 2003, the Environmental Protection Agency published in the Federal
Register
new rules for operating permits for concentrated animal feeding operations. The proposal includes
the objectives of preventing discharges from manure-storage lagoons, and limiting the spreading of
manure to protect waterways.
(This report will not be updated.)
