{"id":3862,"date":"2026-03-17T04:56:11","date_gmt":"2026-03-17T00:56:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/duye.live\/?p=3862"},"modified":"2026-03-17T04:56:12","modified_gmt":"2026-03-17T00:56:12","slug":"gop-farm-bill-set-to-unleash-pesticide-use-and-strip-animal-welfare-protections","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/duye.live\/?p=3862","title":{"rendered":"GOP Farm Bill Set to Unleash Pesticide Use and Strip Animal Welfare Protections"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>The bill protects agrochemicals producers from lawsuits, and overturns food and pesticide safety laws and statutes.By&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/truthout.org\/authors\/michael-arria\/\">Michael Arria<\/a>&nbsp;,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/truthout.org\/\">Truthout<\/a>PublishedMarch 14, 2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/truthout.org\/app\/uploads\/2026\/03\/GettyImages-2163443698.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A crop duster flying low while spraying an alfalfa field near Tracy, San Joaquin County, California.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Support justice-driven, accurate and transparent news \u2014 make a&nbsp;<\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/support.truthout.org\/-\/XXQLBDSX\/&amp;utm_source=truthout&amp;utm_medium=bcb&amp;utm_campaign=304218\"><em>quick donation<\/em><\/a><em>&nbsp;to Truthout today!&nbsp;<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/agriculture.house.gov\/farmbill\/\">\u201cFarm, Food, and National Security Act of 2026\u201d<\/a>&nbsp;that is coming up for a House vote this spring is yet another GOP-led assault on the country\u2019s food safety, warn public health organizations, environmental groups, and animal rights advocates, who are sounding the alarm over the five-year bill.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The House Committee on Agriculture passed the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/agriculture.house.gov\/farmbill\/\">\u201cFarm, Food, and National Security Act of 2026\u201d<\/a>&nbsp;on March 5 by a 34-17 vote. All 27 Republicans on the committee backed the bill, and seven Democrats crossed the aisle to join them. The legislation will now head to Congress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The 800-page document is being praised by Big Agriculture and industry groups across the nation, and Rep. Glenn \u201cGT\u201d Thompson (R-Pennsylvania), chairman of the committee, has&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/agriculture.house.gov\/news\/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=8102\">described it<\/a>&nbsp;as \u201c a collaboration between Republicans, Democrats, and stakeholders.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Stay in the loop<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Never miss the news and analysis you care about.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul id=\"gform_fields_144453414\" class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Email*<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>But public health advocates warn that the bill is set to further erode well-being and health in the U.S., further deepening the hypocrisy of Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) Robert F. Kennedy Jr.\u2019s repeated promise to \u201cMake America Healthy Again.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cRather than address the economic crises facing America\u2019s family farmers, this Farm Bill is a thinly veiled gift bag for Big Ag and pesticide manufacturers. It\u2019s a massive slap in the face to people across the political spectrum demanding a healthier food system,\u201d&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/foe.org\/news\/house-ag-committee-farm-bill-2026\/\">said<\/a>&nbsp;Jason Davidson, a senior food and agriculture campaigner with Friends of the Earth U.S.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Pesticides<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Some of the most contentious&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/bp-dc.org\/assets\/media\/documents\/Farm%20Bill%20Draft%20Text%20Pesticide%20Provision%20Excerpts.2.13.2026.pdf\">sections<\/a>&nbsp;of the bill concern pesticides.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Section 10205 blocks consumers and farmers harmed by pesticides from suing companies over inadequate safety labeling. Section 10206 would overturn all state and local laws that protect food safety. Section 10207 would repeal federal statutes created to protect people and animals from pesticides.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Rep. Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) introduced an amendment that would have stripped these sections from the bill, but the effort was rejected by the committee.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cOnce again, the Trump Administration and Republicans in Congress are siding with chemical companies and choosing corporate profits over Americans\u2019 health \u2014 while paying lip service to the \u2018Make America Healthy Again\u2019 movement. This Farm Bill is a gift to Big Chemical, plain and simple. It delivers exactly what giants like Bayer have spent years lobbying for: blanket immunity from lawsuits and the power to gut the state warning label laws that protect families, farmers, and children,\u201d said the congresswoman in a&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/pingree.house.gov\/news\/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=6709\">statement<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/pingree.house.gov\/news\/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=6709\">.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.beyondpesticides.org\/\">Beyond Pesticides<\/a>&nbsp;executive director Jay Feldman said the committee\u2019s GOP majority have \u201cpassed a measure that has garnered across-the-board disapproval, except from those representing the vested interests of chemical companies and agribusiness.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The push to shield chemical companies from liability is not occurring in a vacuum.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Shortly before the bill passed in committee, Bayer announced a proposed class settlement for the thousands of people who claim they developed non-Hodgkin lymphoma from exposure to the weedkiller Roundup. Those impacted had formerly sued Monsanto, but Bayer inherited the lawsuits when it acquired the company in 2018. The company is not admitting to any liability, but the proposed settlement totals $7.25 billion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The herbicide at the center of those lawsuits is glyphosate, which the World Health Organization\u2019s International Agency for Research on Cancer has&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/organicconsumers.org\/who-publishes-full-probable-human-carcinogen-report-glyphosate\/?gad_source=1&amp;gad_campaignid=22191999341&amp;gbraid=0AAAAADSVWhUWp6NkXeHwuEU6wsELNKvEr&amp;gclid=Cj0KCQjwgr_NBhDFARIsAHiUWr6kk5vLr_U9g0uXfKUn-Db9o70Yer-UA1gTy62OLQkrULD0cAiZ7zkaAgfqEALw_wcB\">classified<\/a>&nbsp;as a \u201cprobable human carcinogen.\u201d A day after the Bayer announcement, President Donald Trump invoked a wartime emergency authority to increase the domestic production of glyphosate. It\u2019s a move that some insiders believe is directly connected to the lawsuits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThe scope of this [litigation against Bayer] is way beyond anything we\u2019ve ever seen in the pesticide context,\u201d Nathan Donley, an environmental health science director at the Center for Biological Diversity,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/cen.acs.org\/environment\/pesticides\/glyphosate-roundup-bayer-monsanto-preemption-trump-executive-order\/104\/web\/2026\/03\">told<\/a>&nbsp;<em>Chemical &amp; Engineering News<\/em>. \u201cWe\u2019re in a full-court press, basically, of Bayer trying to get out of its liabilities.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When he ran for president in 2024, HHS Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr.&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2026\/02\/27\/trump-maha-glyphosate-order-democrats-rfk-jr.html\">called<\/a>&nbsp;glyphosate \u201cone of the likely culprits in America\u2019s chronic disease epidemic.\u201d However, he dutifully backed Trump\u2019s order.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cDonald Trump\u2019s executive order puts America first where it matters most \u2014 our defense readiness and our food supply,\u201d&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/thehill.com\/policy\/energy-environment\/5745981-glyphosate-trump-order-maha-opposition\/\">said<\/a>&nbsp;Kennedy in a statement. \u201cWe must safeguard America\u2019s national security first, because all of our priorities depend on it. When hostile actors control critical inputs, they weaken our security. By expanding domestic production, we close that gap and protect American families.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Kennedy\u2019s shift has angered many in the \u201cMAHA\u201d community who have supported the Trump administration. \u201cMAHA Moms Turn Against Trump\u201d&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2026\/02\/19\/us\/politics\/maha-moms-glyphosate-roundup-robert-kennedy.html\">declares<\/a>&nbsp;a recent&nbsp;<em>New York Times<\/em>&nbsp;headline.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWomen feel like they were lied to, that MAHA movement is a sham,\u201d Turning Point USA podcaster Alex Clark told the paper. \u201cHow am I supposed to rally these women to vote red in the midterms? How can we win their trust back? I am unsure if we can.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Animal Rights<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Section 12006 of the farm bill looks to overturn animal welfare laws by effectively adopting the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.congress.gov\/bill\/119th-congress\/house-bill\/4673\/cosponsors\">\u201cSave Our Bacon\u201d Act<\/a>, a Republican congressional effort that\u2019s failed to gather support from more than 10 percent of the House.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>That legislation takes aim at&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.mcguirewoods.com\/client-resources\/alerts\/2024\/3\/californias-prop-12-fully-in-effect\/\">California\u2019s Prop 12<\/a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/humaneaction.org\/blog\/2025\/10\/victory-court-affirms-massachusetts-groundbreaking-farm-animal-protection-law\">Massachusetts\u2019 Question 3<\/a>, which place limits on the sale of meat and eggs from farms where animals are not granted enough room to turn around, stand up, lie down, and fully extend their limbs. Both measures were overwhelmingly approved by state voters, but Big Agriculture lobbyists have consistently pushed for both laws to be overturned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A coalition of pork producers, meat companies, and farmers recently gathered in Washington to call for the \u201cSave Our Bacon\u201d Act to be removed from the farm bill.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cVoters made their voices heard, and we agree with them that animals deserve space to move,\u201d said Missouri hog farmer Russ Kremer. \u201cProp 12 gives small farms like ours the opportunity to survive during a time when agriculture is heavily consolidated and independent farmers are being pushed out. If Congress rolls back Prop 12, that\u2019s a move against family farmers.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The fight to topple these state laws comes amid a Department of Agriculture&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.vox.com\/future-perfect\/480302\/trump-slaughter-line-speed-usda\">push<\/a>&nbsp;to speed up the kill lines across U.S. slaughterhouses. The new draft rules propose increasing kill line speeds for chickens from 140 a minute to 175, turkeys from 55 to 60, and pig slaughterhouses would have no limit. The department has also proposed eliminating annual workplace safety reports at the plants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Let Them Eat Contaminated Meat<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The proposed farm bill also doubles down on the Trump administration\u2019s Dietary Guidelines, which recommend that Americans eat significantly more meat. Instead of basing these recommendations on&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.dietaryguidelines.gov\/2025-advisory-committee-report\">scientific research<\/a>, the Trump team relied on nine experts, seven of whom had&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/cdn.realfood.gov\/Scientific%20Report_1.8.26.pdf\">direct connections<\/a>&nbsp;to the meat industry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In addition to improving public health and reducing pollution, a decrease in meat consumption would reduce the greenhouse gas emissions responsible for climate change. A 2025 report from the scientific journal&nbsp;<em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nature.com\/articles\/s41558-025-02450-7\">Nature Climate Change<\/a><\/em>&nbsp;found that 11 million tons of meat is consumed in U.S. cities annually, resulting in roughly 329 million tons of carbon emissions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Democratic committee members proposed amendments to the farm bill aimed at addressing the devastating&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.npr.org\/2026\/03\/02\/nx-s1-5729137\/across-the-u-s-changes-to-snap-benefits-are-kicking-in\">Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) cuts<\/a>&nbsp;from Trump\u2019s \u201cOne Big Beautiful Bill Act,\u201d but these were rejected.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cEvery member of the House Agriculture Committee represents families with low incomes who need SNAP to afford groceries, and it is deeply disappointing to see all Republicans and some Democratic members of the House Agriculture Committee vote to advance a bill that fails to deliver for these constituents,\u201d&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbpp.org\/press\/statements\/house-agriculture-committee-advances-unacceptable-farm-bill-leaving-low-income\">said<\/a>&nbsp;the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities in a statement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Instead, Trump\u2019s reinforced dietary guidelines designate animal protein as a SNAP \u201cincentive food\u201d allowing retailers to bolster meat consumption by offering it to SNAP recipients at a discount. What quality of meat would these consumers be eating? As previously mentioned, the bill would prohibit states from taking action to protect their constituents from drugs and pathogens in their food supply.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIf passed by the House, this Farm Bill will move to the Senate, but this proposal should be dead on arrival,\u201d&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.foodandwaterwatch.org\/2026\/03\/09\/house-farm-bill-big-ag\/\">wrote<\/a>&nbsp;Food &amp; Water Watch\u2019s&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.foodandwaterwatch.org\/author\/lauren-borsheim\/\">Lauren Borsheim<\/a>. \u201cA Farm Bill that ignores devastating SNAP cuts, weakens vital conservation programs, subsidizes factory farms, and shields pesticide corporations from accountability betrays the Farm Bill\u2019s purpose \u2014 serving farmers, consumers, and rural communities.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\">An urgent appeal for your support: 10 Days to raise $50,000<\/h5>\n\n\n\n<p>Truthout relies on individual donations to publish independent journalism, free from political and corporate influence. In fact, we\u2019re almost entirely funded by readers like you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Unfortunately, donations are down.&nbsp;<\/strong>At a moment when independent journalism is urgently needed, we are struggling to meet our operational costs due to increasing political censorship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Truthout may end this month in the red without additional help, so we\u2019ve launched a fundraiser.&nbsp;<strong>We have 10 days to hit our $50,000 goal.<\/strong>&nbsp;Please make a tax-deductible one-time or monthly donation if you can.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"515\" height=\"590\" src=\"https:\/\/duye.live\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-183.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3863\" style=\"width:735px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/duye.live\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-183.png 515w, https:\/\/duye.live\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-183-262x300.png 262w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 515px) 100vw, 515px\" \/><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The bill protects agrochemicals producers from lawsuits, and overturns food and pesticide safety laws and statutes.By&nbsp;Michael Arria&nbsp;,&nbsp;TruthoutPublishedMarch 14, 2026 Support justice-driven, accurate and transparent news \u2014 make a&nbsp;quick donation&nbsp;to Truthout &hellip; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3863,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[8],"class_list":["post-3862","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/duye.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3862","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/duye.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/duye.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/duye.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/duye.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3862"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/duye.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3862\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3864,"href":"https:\/\/duye.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3862\/revisions\/3864"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/duye.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/3863"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/duye.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3862"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/duye.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3862"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/duye.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3862"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}