At the 2024 National Association of Farm Broadcasters (NAFB) Washington Watch event in Washington, D.C., members of NAFB , including Farm Director KC Sheperd, had the chance to talk with Congressman John Duarte about many pertinent issues in the agricultural industry. Duarte represents California and is also a fourth generation farmer.
Duarte first talked about resource abandonment in agriculture and its impact on American working families. To solve this issue, Duarte highlighted the need for policies that support farmers.
Although some American families are doing well and some salaries have been increased, Duarte said the Biden Administration is increasing interest rates at the same time. Now, Duarte said home affordability, energy affordability and more is on the wrong track due to a broad category of policies he calls resource abandonment.
“Sadly, when we are not abandoning our resources in agriculture, we tend to want to misdirect them towards uses that aren’t feeding humans or feeding things that feed humans,” Duarte said. “I think that is a crisis and I think that is coming down on the backs of American working families.”
When asked about Proposition 12 in California and possibly seeing a change in the Farm Bill, Duarte said overall, these policies are impacting the affordability of animal protein for California residents.
“We care about how many pigs there are in a pig pen, and we care about how a chicken lays an egg,” Duarte said. “Although, I don’t think most of the people supporting these policies really know of either.”
Next, Duarte talked about his new bill, the EV Trade Act.
“If you look at the cobalt mining in the Congo, this supports the critical minerals needed for these electric vehicles,” Duarte said. “It is the most abject colonialism and slavery that we’ve seen in the history of the world. It’s industrialized slavery in the Congo, and we are subsidizing electric vehicles made with these critical minerals out of these inhuman mines, and so I’m dropping the EV Fair Trade Act that says if you want an electric vehicle, great, I’m sure you look cute in it, but if you want a federal rebate, we have to document that these electric vehicles that we’re subsidizing through taxpayer dollars are not made of constituents or components produced with slave labor. I’m a lot more concerned about human slave labor through our proxy imperialism to China in the Congo, than I am about telling the farmer who raises pigs and has a very economic and deep interest in their health and welfare, simply for financial reasons, if nothing else, how to raise a pig or how to how chicken should lay an egg or spread its wings in the cage.”
When asked about his outlook on the ag labor crisis, Duarte said one of his main mantras is that the American dream must stay alive. This means more border control so immigrants can work safely in the U.S. without others coming through with ill intentions such as drugs.
“There’s some real opportunities for these migrant ag families to make a lot of money,” Duarte said. “It’s hard work. It’s not certain, but it’s important for them to establish.”
Regarding the California water situation, Duarte explained the need to make up for generations of neglect to provide for the future.
“So, make no mistake when California has water scarcity when we’re causing a thermal Dustbowl in the South Valley, destroying millions of acres of irrigated landscapes and the habitat value those involved as well as the climate value in the carbon sinks those involved but that’s where you’re worried about every morning, this was a choice and it’s a choice we’re making today…,” Duarte said.
To listen to full comments from Congressman Duarte, click the listen bar above the story!
