Rep. Jim Hagedorn (MN-01) has requested USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue to consider a new proposal to mitigate livestock market losses caused by the economic pause designed to minimize the COVID-19 pandemic.
 
Hagedorn and Sec. Perdue spoke via a House Agriculture Committee conference call and discussed the possibility of expanding coverage of USDA’s Livestock Risk Protection Plan (LRP) to pork and cattle producers.
 
Hagedorn’s proposal, developed after conferring with First District family farmers, would adjust the current LRP to set new reference pricings on livestock, in order to address current market volatility. The adjustments to the program would be temporary in order to prevent long-term artificial market distortion.
 
“In a matter of just weeks, livestock markets have dropped through the floor. Hog and cattle farmers are on the brink, and through no fault of their own,” Hagedorn said. “Adjusting current livestock reference prices as producers sell into this artificially depressed market would provide a short-term lifeline to American farmers dealing with the effects of the coronavirus.”
 
“This policy could also serve as a blueprint to develop a long-term solution to avoid the possibility of future market dips associated with infectious animal diseases such as African Swine Fever,” Hagedorn said.