For decades, the U.S. agriculture industry had staunchly opposed measures to limit climate change.
Lobbying groups, such as the American Farm Bureau Federation, expressed skepticism that humans caused it. And companies, such as Tyson Foods and Smithfield Foods, have been fined millions for environmental violations.
But the industry in recent years has altered its stance on the issue. Riding a wave of shifting public opinion about the reality of climate change, it is staking out a new position as part of the climate solution.
One of the most visible signs of this about-face happened late last year when the Farm Bureau partnered with dozens of other groups, from agriculture organizations to environmental advocates, to announce a new initiative: the Food and Agriculture Climate Alliance. The group has proposed 40 new policies, including voluntary incentives and other tools for farmers to address a warming planet.
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USDA photo by Preston Keres
A U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Inspector shows Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue around the processing floor of the Triumph Foods pork processing facility April 28, 2017. The facility houses 2,800 employees in St. Joseph, Mo. USDA has 90 days to determine next steps in how to address courts’ criticisms of considering impact of worker safety.
The U.S. District Court of Minnesota issued a decision in
United Food and Commercial Workers Union, Local No. 663 v. U.S. Department of Agriculture, requiring the new administration’s USDA to decide how to proceed on the 2019 rule to change line speeds on hog slaughter inspection lines.
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Once climate change deniers, the agriculture industry positions itself as part of the solution Ignacio Calderon
For decades, the U.S. agriculture industry had staunchly opposed measures to limit climate change.
Lobbying groups, such as the American Farm Bureau Federation, expressed skepticism that humans caused it. And companies, such as Tyson Foods and Smithfield Foods, have been fined millions for environmental violations.
But the industry in recent years has altered its stance on the issue. Riding a wave of shifting public opinion about the reality of climate change, it is staking out a new position as part of the climate solution.