Congressman Landry Listens to Louisiana Farmers

CROWLEY, LA – As Congress prepares to write the new long-term reauthorization of the Farm Bill, Congressman Jeff Landry (R, LA-03) has been seeking input from all agricultural producers. In his pursuit for the best solutions for South Louisiana farmers, Landry attended the Louisiana Rice Council and Louisiana Rice Growers Association Annual Meeting Wednesday night – listening to concerns and talking about legislative efforts.

“As a former cane field worker and small business owner, I know Washington uncertainty stifles economic activity especially for farmers who can't make their necessary long-term planting and budgetary decisions without knowing if the safety-net provided by the Farm Bill will be there next year,” said Landry. “South Louisiana understands very well what happened when our energy industry was sent overseas: prices went up and jobs went down; if we fail to pass a Farm Bill, we’ll do the same thing to our food production.”

“Unfortunately, Washington politicians don't understand our agriculture industry,” explained Landry. “Washington politicians want to cut the vital farm safety net which makes up only 16 percent of the Farm Bill, while ignoring the fraud within the Food Stamp program which composes 73 percent of the Farm Bill.”

"I’m not going to let Washington pay for their reckless spending by penalizing our farmers so I’m taking the input from actual producers to push back against the clueless Washington politicians," continued Landry. "There are only 61 Members representing rural districts in all of Congress so we, who represent farming constituencies, must fight for all of agriculture. If we get into a farmer verses farmer fight, we’re only going to lose access to a responsible, long-term Farm Bill that ensures our farmers can keep feeding and clothing our nation."

“I want to thank Congressman Landry for coming to our annual meeting and listening to our ideas on the Farm Bill. I appreciate all of Congressman Landry’s efforts in Congress fighting for us farmers and making sure our concerns are addressed. And I look forward to continue working with Congressman Landry to get an effective safety net passed through Congress,” said Jeff Durand, a local rice and crawfish producer and the Vice Chairman of the Louisiana Rice Council.