Alternative Agriculture:
Federal Incentives and Farmers' Opinions
PEMD-90-12: Published: Feb 16, 1990. Publicly Released: Mar 15, 1990.
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Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO assessed the incentives and disincentives of federal farm programs that influenced farmers' adoption of alternative production methods, focusing on: (1) alternative agriculture, which attempts to address the health, environmental, and economic problems associated with conventional agriculture; (2) implications of federal commodity price and income support, farm credit, and crop insurance programs; and (3) farmers' opinions on the factors influencing planting decisions, sustainability, credit and crop insurance availability, and risk reduction.
GAO found that, while federal farm programs pose no direct statutory or regulatory barriers that would prevent the adoption of alternative practices, the programs: (1) support crops requiring high agrichemical inputs and those associated with high rates of soil erosion; (2) encourage farmers to specialize in program crops and grow the same crops from year to year; and (3) discourage farmers from rotating crops and encourage high levels of conventional inputs. GAO also found that farmers: (1) believed federal farm programs greatly influenced their planting decisions; (2) believed farm program participation and crop diversity were good strategies for reducing farm-related risks, and less than half considered crop insurance to be a good risk-reduction strategy; and (3) expect to continue their current practices, despite research suggesting that conventional agriculture practices damage the environment and other research showing that alternative agriculture can be profitable. GAO believes that: (1) further research is needed to assess the effectiveness of alternative crops and production methods; and (2) while changes in federal farm programs will be necessary to encourage the adoption of alternative agriculture, such changes alone may not significantly increase the use of alternatives.
Jan 15, 2021
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Nov 20, 2020
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Food Safety:
CDC Could Further Strengthen Its Efforts to Identify and Respond to Foodborne IllnessesGAO-21-23: Published: Oct 21, 2020. Publicly Released: Nov 20, 2020.
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Farm Programs:
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Sep 16, 2020
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Agriculture Spending:
Opportunities Exist for USDA to Identify Successes and Challenges of the Farmers to Families Food Box Program to Inform Future EffortsGAO-20-711R: Published: Sep 16, 2020. Publicly Released: Sep 16, 2020.
Sep 14, 2020
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USDA Market Facilitation Program:
Information on Payments for 2019GAO-20-700R: Published: Aug 21, 2020. Publicly Released: Sep 14, 2020.
Aug 10, 2020
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National Bio and Agro-defense Facility:
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May 7, 2020
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Food Safety:
FDA and USDA Could Strengthen Existing Efforts to Prepare for Oversight of Cell-Cultured MeatGAO-20-325: Published: Apr 7, 2020. Publicly Released: May 7, 2020.
Apr 13, 2020
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Priority Open Recommendations:
U.S. Department of AgricultureGAO-20-288PR: Published: Apr 6, 2020. Publicly Released: Apr 13, 2020.
Dec 23, 2019
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Nutrition Assistance Programs:
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Dec 6, 2019
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Imported Seafood Safety:
Actions Needed to Improve FDA Oversight of Import Alert Removal DecisionsGAO-20-62: Published: Nov 6, 2019. Publicly Released: Dec 6, 2019.
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