ASSEMBLY CONCURRENT RESOLUTION No. 175

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

219th LEGISLATURE

INTRODUCED MAY 14, 2020

Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman  CAROL A. MURPHY

District 7 (Burlington)

Assemblyman  RONALD S. DANCER

District 12 (Burlington, Middlesex, Monmouth and Ocean)

Assemblyman  ERIC HOUGHTALING

District 11 (Monmouth)

SYNOPSIS

     Expresses support for establishment of "Farmers Bill of Rights."

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

     As introduced.

A Concurrent Resolution expressing support for a "Farmers Bill of Rights."

Whereas, According to the Department of Agriculture, food and agriculture are New Jersey's third largest industry, behind pharmaceuticals and tourism, bringing in billions of dollars in revenue to the State; and

Whereas, Farmers in the Garden State produce more than 100 different kinds of fruits and vegetables for consumers to enjoy here in New Jersey, elsewhere in the Northeast, in Canada, or in many countries around the world; and 

Whereas, Nationally, New Jersey is one of the top 10 producers of blueberries, cranberries, peaches, tomatoes, bell peppers, eggplant, cucumbers, apples, spinach, squash, and asparagus; and

Whereas, New Jersey's farmers also produce hundreds of thousands of dollars' worth of specialty crops that added many unique flavors to the Garden State's bounty; and

Whereas,  The Center for American Progress has reported that, across the country, mergers and acquisitions have increased corporate concentration across agricultural markets, including  an oligopoly of 85 percent  of the corn seed market in the four largest firms in the seed sector; and

Whereas, According to the Open Markets Institute, excessive concentration in the poultry industry has resulted in half of the country's chicken farmers working in regions dominated by only one or two processing companies, leaving those farmers with little, if any, bargaining power for better contracts or growing terms; and

Whereas, The Organization for Competitive Markets has reported cattle prices paid to farmers from 2013 to 2016 dropped by 13 percent, while during the same period prices paid for beef by consumers at the grocery store increased by four percent, suggesting that the prices paid to farmers and by consumers are not the result of a fair and just market; and

Whereas, Corporate concentration and abusive practices in America's food and farm sector are  harming consumers, rural communities,  family farmers, and ranchers, including historically underserved farmers and ranchers, by diminishing the availability of seed choice, limiting the accessibility of domestic farming lands, increasing food prices, manipulating markets, and hindering access to traditional foodways and agricultural practices; and

Whereas, Increasing farm debt, decreasing incomes, and deteriorating overall conditions for family farmers and ranchers are causing farm foreclosures and Chapter 12 bankruptcies to steadily increase across the country; and

Whereas, According to the Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting, foreign acquisition of, and increasing investments in, American farmlands and agribusiness presents a risk to food system security and contributes to increasing prices of the country's farmland beyond the financial ability of local residents to purchase it; and

Whereas, Monopolization, large agricultural corporations, and foreign interests in America's farming sector, combined with a changing climate, creates an unprecedented negative impact on the regional economic strength and security of agricultural communities; and

Whereas, The Legislature recognizes the many contributions that family farmers and ranchers have made to the State and the country's agricultural industry, local food production, food sovereignty, rich variety of the country's abundant food supply, and traditional and cultural agricultural practices; now, therefore,

     Be It Resolved by the General Assembly of the State of New Jersey (the Senate concurring):

     1.  a.  This Legislature expresses its support for the agricultural community and supports the establishment of a Farmers Bill of Rights, recognizing that farmers should have the right to:  access a competitive open marketplace to buy seeds, fertilizer, and other goods, and to sell produce, livestock, and meat; feed their community; access fair capital; protect natural resources and preserve land-based agricultural resources; food security and access to domestic farmland; repair their own tractors and equipment; accurately inform consumers of a product's origin using transparent labeling; access basic services in rural communities; and preserve a diverse community of farmers and farming practices.

     b.  This Legislature urges the United States Congress to pass Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 36 of 2020 supporting a Farmers Bill of Rights.

     c.  This Legislature further urges all relevant federal and State agencies to take any available action to support the agricultural community.

     2.  Copies of this resolution, as filed with the Secretary of State, shall be transmitted by the Clerk of the General Assembly or the Secretary of the Senate to the President and Vice-President of the United States, the Majority and Minority Leaders of the United States Senate, the Speaker and Minority Leader of the United States House of Representatives, the Secretary of the United States Department of Agriculture, the Governor of the State of New Jersey, the Secretary of the New Jersey Department of Agriculture, and every member of Congress elected from the State of New Jersey.

STATEMENT

     This concurrent resolution expresses the support of the Legislature for the agricultural community and supports the establishment of a Farmers Bill of Rights, recognizing that farmers should have the right to:  access a competitive open marketplace to buy seeds, fertilizer, and other goods, and to sell produce, livestock, and meat; feed their community; access fair capital; protect natural resources and preserve land-based agricultural resources; food security and access to domestic farmland; repair their own tractors and equipment; accurately inform consumers of a product's origin using transparent labeling; access basic services in rural communities; and preserve a diverse community of farmers and farming practices.

     The resolution urges the United States Congress to pass Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 36 of 2020 supporting a Farmers Bill of Rights, and further urges all relevant federal and State agencies to take any available action to support the agricultural community.