insurance

The dairy subsidy created in the 2014 farm law, the insurance-like Margin Protection Program, "is not working" but it can be retooled into an effective safety net, the head of the National Milk Producers Federation told the House Agriculture Committee. The changes would provide more assistance to producers during tough times, like the past couple of years, and potentially drive up costs to the government.

At the Organic Trade Association conference, AgSec Vilsack encouraged the industry to pursue a so-called checkoff program to pay for research and promotion of organic products. "This is an enormous opportunity the farm bill has created. The industry should take advantage of it," Vilsack said.