Vicky Hartzer: Inflation severely impacting ranchers and farmers

(From Fourth District Congresswoman Vicky Hartzler)

Inflation isn’t just felt at the gas pump or the grocery store. It is also severely impacting our state’s farmers and ranchers.

As a farmer myself, I see firsthand the destruction the Biden administration’s policies are having on the agriculture industry. With fertilizer prices soaring 17% in the first six months of 2022 and a 5.1% increase in farm sector production expenses on top of a 9.4% increase from last year, it’s easy to see why our farmers are frustrated.

But there are solutions we could implement today which would put us back on track:

First, we must take immediate steps to unleash America’s energy industry and lower farm input costs. President Biden can do this by increasing oil and gas leasing on federal lands and waters, expediting pipeline permitting, and abandoning rulemaking designed to discourage investment in American energy.

Second, we must increase domestic fertilizer production. President Biden can accomplish this by requiring the Secretary of the Interior to consider potash and phosphorus for inclusion on the U.S. Geological Survey’s list of "critical minerals" and provide recommendations on how to boost domestic production.

Lastly, we must restore the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to a science-based institution. With rising input prices, farmers deserve reliable access to critical crop protection tools, not the EPA creating additional uncertainty for producers by leaving them without readily available and cost-effective alternatives for key planting decisions.

If Democrats take our agriculture industry seriously, they will fight for these steps just as my Republican colleagues and I are in the House. I am hopeful we can come to a consensus for the benefit of our farmers and ranchers.