Sugar, soybean and rice growers, the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association and the crop insurance industry on Monday issued statements praising the farm bill discussion draft released Friday by House Agriculture Committee Chairman Glenn “GT” Thompson, R-Pa., but the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition vigorously criticized it.

Neil Rockstad, a Minnesota sugarbeet grower who is president of the American Sugarbeet Growers Association, and Patrick Frischhertz, a Louisiana sugarcane grower and eighth-generation farmer, said, “We thank the House Agriculture Committee for the strengthened U.S. sugar policy contained in this bill which will help ensure that America’s 11,000 sugar beet and sugarcane farmers and our workers can continue producing an essential ingredient in our food supply, maintain resilient supply chains, and meet the needs of American families and all of our customers.”

U.S. Congresswoman Monica De La Cruz introduced legislation designed to help farmers and ranchers in South Texas impacted by Mexico’s failure to deliver the water it owes the United States under the 1944 Water Treaty.

The lack of water and uncertainty led to the closure of Texas’ only remaining sugar mill earlier this year as sugarcane growers cannot produce a crop without irrigation water.

Sugar workers who are members of the International Association of Machinists were recently on Capitol Hill talking about how a strong U.S. sugar policy supports union jobs across the country. We’re proud that much of the sugar made in America is done so by a union workforce.

“U.S. sugar policy provides so much opportunity for people in the rural communities,” said Cornelius Fowler, a truck driver for Florida Crystals with 16 years’ experience on the job. “They have great benefits, great programs that allow individuals that want to further their career.”

A long-time veteran of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Casey Bean will join the American Sugar Alliance (ASA) as the organization’s trade consultant on May 1. Bean will work with ASA to analyze the complex global trade issues that impact U.S. sugar farmers and shape America’s no-cost sugar policy.

With more than thirty years of experience working with the USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS), Bean’s work at FAS spans multiple regions across the globe including the countries of Bolivia, China, Colombia, Ecuador, Japan, Pakistan, Peru, and Venezuela.

Recently the Food and Agriculture Policy Research Institute (FAPRI) at the University of Missouri released their outlook for U.S. agriculture. They project that American sugar production remains strong and is expected to grow, despite challenges we have seen over the past couple years including factory closures in Sidney, MT, and Santa Rosa, TX.

“Despite new and existing challenges, the forecast is bright for American sugar production as long as the farmers’ safety net is strengthened,” said Dr. Rob Johansson, Director of Economics and Policy Analysis at the American Sugar Alliance.

Trycera herbicide from Helena Agri-Enterprises has received federal registration from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for use in sugarcane. Trycera is the first triclopyr product to be approved for use in the crop. It offers sugarcane growers a new tool to control Divine nightshade and other problematic weed species, pending approval by state regulatory agencies.