MN Farmers Union Adopts Five Special Orders

Members of the Minnesota Farmers Union adopted five special orders during its recent annual convention. MFU President Gary Wertish says affordable and accessible healthcare, better market competition, expanding local and regional processing, creating climate resistance, and passing a comprehensive farm bill in 2023 were identified as priorities:

“The current farm bill expires at the end of September 2023 I believe, so as Congress gets back in session they’ll be taking that up and we need to be involved in that. We have a farm bill that’s working fairly well, but there are more than likely ways we can improve it.”

Wertish says he’s hopeful the 2023 Farm Bill will include an anti-monopoly title and program that supports climate resilience:

“A lot of that can be wrapped into a farm bill, so that’s probably one of the top priorities is trying to really wrap as much as we can into the farm bill and yet maintain those strong safety nets for the farmers.”

Wertish says delegates also debated policy surrounding a grain indemnity fund for beginning farmers.