On April 26, 2021, COPAFS signed onto a letter in support of the America Grows Act of 2021, a bipartisan bill Senators Durbin and Moran have recently introducted that would significantly increase our nation’s investment in agricultural research and development.
The Honorable Debbie Stabenow
Chairwoman, Senate Agriculture, Nutrition,
andForestry Committee The Honorable Patrick Leahy
Chairman, Senate Appropriations Committee The Honorable Jeff Merkley Chairman, Senate Agriculture, Rural
Development, Food and Drug
Administration,and Related Agencies
Appropriations Subcommittee The Honorable John Boozman
Ranking Member, Senate Agriculture,
Nutrition,and Forestry Committee The Honorable Richard Shelby
Vice Chairman, Senate Appropriations Committee The Honorable John Hoeven
Ranking Member, Senate Agriculture, Rural
Development, Food and Drug
Administration, and Related Agencies
Appropriations Subcommittee
Dear Ranking Members,
As organizations concerned about the future of food and agricultural science, the undersigned are writing to express our support for the America Grows Act of 2021 (S.1371), a bipartisan bill Senators Durbin and Moran have recently introduced that would significantly increase our nation’s investment in agricultural research and development.
Food and agriculture remain a pillar of the U.S. economy, accounting for nearly $3 trillion of our GDP, 1 in 6 jobs, and a significant contribution to our nation’s trade balance at more than $155 trillion in export value. As the COVID-19 pandemic has exposed vulnerabilities of our agriculture and food system, and the increasing occurrence of natural disasters that harm harvests and production, agricultural research is a critical solution for our nation’s economic and national security. Thanks to the U.S. government’s extraordinary leadership and commitment to agricultural research and development since 1862, our agriculture sector is the most productive in the world, providing Americans with safe, affordable, and abundant food.
The public return on investment for agricultural research is significant, estimated at $17 to $1. Yet U.S. funding in this area has declined in real dollars since 2003 while other forms of domestic research have risen dramatically. The America Grows Act would help reverse this dangerous trend by reinvesting in our nation’s scientists and producers and helping reassert U.S. research leadership on the global stage. Modeled after the successful 21st Century Cures Act passed in 2016, which spurred additional funding for the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the America Grows Act appropriates a 5% inflation-adjusted annual increase for the next 10 years for agricultural research in the following USDA agencies:
- Agricultural Research Service (ARS)
- Economic Research Service (ERS)
- National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS)
- National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA)
The timing for the America Grows Act could not be better. Investments in research are critical in addressing production, nutrition, food security, and other major challenges across the U.S. food and agricultural sector. Farm cash receipts from crop and livestock sales are at their lowest
point since 2016, and USDA projects that farm income will decline 8% in 2021. Our nation’s
producers are facing pest, disease, and severe weather challenges that research can solve.
Thank you for your consideration and your hard work on behalf of agriculture and agricultural research. We look forward to working with you to advance the America Grows Act. This legislation represents a crucial step in meeting the vital needs of our nation’s producers and consumers while retaining our status as the world leader in agricultural innovation.
Sincerely,
Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics
AFRI Coalition
Agricultural and Applied Economics Association
Agricultural Retailers Association
American Association for the Advancement of Science
American Association of Mycobacterial Diseases
American Association of Veterinary Medical Colleges
American Dairy Science Association
American Farm Bureau Federation
American Malting Barley Association
American Phytopathological Society
American Phytopathological Society (APS)
American Pulse Association
American Seed Trade Association
American Society for Horticultural Science
American Society for Microbiology
American Society for Nutrition
American Society of Agronomy
American Society of Animal Science
American Society of Plant Biologists
American Statistical Association
American Veterinary Medical Association
Aquatic Plant Management Society
Arizona Farm Bureau
Association of 1890 Research Directors
Association of American Universities
Association of Northeast Extension Directors (NEED)
Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities
Association of Southern Region Extension Directors
The Breakthrough Institute
Brooks Tropicals, LLC
Charles V. Riley Memorial Foundation
College of Agricultural Sciences, Penn State University
Colorado Farm Bureau
Colorado State University
Consumer Federation of America
Corn Refiners Association
Cornell University College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
Council for Agricultural Science and Technology (CAST)
Council of Professional Associations on Federal Statistics
Crop Science Society of America
Ecological Society of America
Entomological Society of America
Eversole Associates
Experiment Station on Organization & Policy (ESCOP)
Farm Journal Foundation
FASS
The Fertilizer Institute
Friends of ARS Coalition
Fort Valley State University
Hop Growers of America
Hop Growers of Washington
Institute for Agriculture and Trade
Institute of Food Technologists
IR-4 Project
Kansas State University
Kauffman’s Animal Health
Michigan State University
Michigan State University AgBioResearch
Midwest Poultry Consortium
Minnesota Canola Council
Montana State University
Mycobacterial Diseases of Animals Multistate Initiative
National Agriculture in the Classroom Organization
National Alfalfa & Forage Alliance
National Association for the Advancement of Animal Science
National Association of Forest Resources Programs
National Association of Plant Breeders
National Association of State Departments of Agriculture
National Barley Growers Association
National Barley Improvement Committee
National Cattlemen’s Beef Association
National Coalition for Food and Agricultural Research
National Corn Growers Association
National Cotton Council
National Farmers Union
National Grange
National Milk Producers Federation
National Pork Producers Council
National Sunflower Association
National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition
National Turfgrass Federation (NTF)
National WIC Association
New York Farm Bureau
North American Millers’ Association
North Carolina State University
North Central Regional Association of Agricultural Experiment Station Directors (NCRA)
North Central Weed Science Society
Northeastern Regional Association of State Agricultural Experiment Station Directors (NERA)
Northeastern Weed Science Society
Oklahoma State University
Oregon State University
Plant Based Products Council
Pollinator Partnership
Poultry Science Association
Robinson Oak Lea Farm
Rochester Institute of Technology
Rural & Agriculture Council of America
Society for Range Management
Soil and Water Conservation Society
Soil Science Society of America
South Dakota State University
Southern Association of Agricultural Experiment Station Directors
Southern Weed Science Society
Supporters of Agricultural Research (SoAR) Foundation
Texas A&M AgriLife
Texas Farm Bureau
Union of Concerned Scientists
United States Cattlemen’s Association
The University of California System
University of California, Davis
University of Delaware
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
University of Maryland
University of Nebraska
University of Wisconsin-Madison
University of Wyoming
US Canola Association
US Dairy Forage Research Center Stakeholder Committee
US Dry Bean Council
USA Dry Pea & Lentil Council
USA Rice
Virginia Farm Bureau Federation
Weed Science Society of America
West Virginia University
West Virginia Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station
Western Association of Agricultural Experiment Station Directors
Western Society of Weed Science
CC: The Honorable Richard Durbin Democratic Whip, The Honorable Jerry Moran
Download/Print the Support the America Grows Act Letter.