The Colorado Pork Producers Council has been following the efforts at the national level for passage of a farm bill before the end of the 2024 session. We are encouraged by the response of our friend Rep. Yadira Caravejo in her diligent work on getting something passed. We encourage all of Colorado representatives to follow suit to ensure passage soon.
This farm bill includes several vital programs for farmers to be able to pass down their business to future generations. We know that our Senate leaders, John Hickenlooper and Michael Bennet, consistently work to represent the efforts and interests of rural Colorado, as well as the House leadership representing our Colorado producers. We encourage them, as the sun begins to set upon the end of 2024 leadership, not to abandon their assurances to all of Colorado, especially the rural producers they represent, and work to get this farm bill over the finish line.
As a Colorado pork producer, I’m very pleased with what’s in the House farm bill, and applaud what is in the Senate one, including a provision that addresses a mound of problems created by California’s Proposition 12.
That 2018 ballot initiative bans the sale in that state of pork from hogs born to sows raised anywhere in the country—including Colorado—in housing that does not meet California’s arbitrary and unscientific standards. If not stopped, California will dictate to the rest of the United States how pigs should be raised. We encourage our DC leadership to remember that Colorado is and has always been a leader in animal welfare, and ending this arbitrary albatross of burdensome regulations must happen sooner than later.
As the legislative body from Colorado, we encourage our senators and House leadership to address and fix this farm bill authorization before the next leadership break.
Joyce Kelly is the executive director of the Colorado Pork Producers Council.
