The message that American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall took to the House Agriculture Committee – farmers are part of the solution for addressing climate change concerns. President Duvall’s testimony highlighted the contributions that American farmers and ranchers have been doing on an ongoing basis.
Duvall addressed the U.S. House Agriculture Committee on February 25.
“Over two generations, we’ve been able to increase productivity by 287 percent, while using the same resources.” Duvall noted, “To say we’re doing more with less is an understatement.”
“U.S. farmers and ranchers contribute significantly fewer GHG emissions than their counterparts around the world.” Duvall pointed out, adding, “EPA data shows agriculture’s global contribution to GHG emissions was 24% in 2010, more than double U.S. farmers’ and ranchers’ contributions to total U.S. emissions in 2019. This significant difference is largely driven by U.S. farmers’ enthusiastic adoption of technology. American farmers and ranchers are pioneers of sustainability, and any policy debate should recognize their contributions, efficiency gains, and the considerable impact of their carbon sequestration efforts.”
AFBF co-founded the “Food and Agriculture Climate Alliance” in order to provide recommendation to lawmakers considering new climate policies and legislation. This coalition has adopted three main principles to guide their recommendations:
- Support voluntary market incentive-based policies
- Achieve science-based outcomes
- Promote the resilience of rural communities and help their economies to better adapt to climate changes