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Republicans and Democrats in Washington, D.C., may not agree on much. But, members from the two major parties are now in agreement that the programs behind the slogans such as “Got Milk” and “Beef: It’s What’s For Dinner” need radical reform as they are harming smaller farmers and agricultural businesses, according to a report from The Hill.
These “checkoff programs” are public-private partnerships that use tax-funding dollars and help push promotional material for the American dairy, beef and other agricultural industries.
The problem Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) and Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) say is that the programs unfairly benefit a select handful of larger corporations, such as Kraft Heinz Co (NASDAQ:KHC) and Tyson Foods Inc (NYSE:TSN), and have led to consolidation that adversely affects smaller farmers.
The checkoff programs raise funds by collecting a small portion of the proceeds from farming. For example, when someone sells a cow, $1 goes to the beef checkoff program. Libertarian conservatives and progressive democrats believe that these programs, which are mandatory, are an unfair tax on everyday farmers who may not see the same benefits from the programs as larger corporations.
Yet, despite the fact that there is bipartisan support to reform the checkoff programs, not all politicians agree they need to go.
“Checkoff programs have made significant, measurable strides in raising the level of demand and awareness for our farmers, ranchers and foresters’ products,” Rep. Barry Moore (R-Ala.) said.
Moore, who introduced legislation to try to help the checkoff programs, appears to receive a large portion of his campaign donations from the big-ag industry. Moore received nearly $100,000 in campaign funding in 2021-2022 from crop-production PACs according to Open Secrets.
Other large corporations in the dairy and agriculture space include Nestle ADR (OTC:NSRGY), Conagra Brands Inc (NYSE:CAG) and Kroger Co (NYSE:KR).
Photo: Shutterstock
