On Sept. 16, the House Agriculture Committee discussed the state of the specialty crop sector. Committee Chair Glenn “GT” Thompson, R-Pa., and Ranking Member Angie Craig, D-Minn., both agreed that specialty crop producers are facing major economic challenges.
They also acknowledged those farmers need different policy approaches than other sectors of the farm economy. Although they pledged to work toward bipartisan solutions, their ideological differences were apparent.
During his opening remarks, Thompson praised the “substantial investments” made in the July budget reconciliation bill (aka the “Big Beautiful Bill”). They included an additional $95 million per year for the specialty crop research initiative, $15 million increase for the Specialty Crop Block Grant Program and the Plant Pest and Disease Management and Disaster Prevention Program, and the doubling of funding for market development programs.
“These investments represent a substantial step in rising to the occasion of assisting our specialty crop producers,” Thompson said. “But investment alone is not enough. We also need to ensure these programs are accessible, effective and responsive to real-world conditions.”
As expected, Craig was not as enamored with the reconciliation bill that was crafted with little to no input from Democrats.
“The Republicans’ Big Ugly Bill, which they are now trying to rebrand due to its unpopularity, was signed into law in July and made some investments in the farm safety net,” Craig said. “However, many of the requests and needs of the specialty crop industry were left behind, like improvements to crop insurance.”
Better specialty crop insurance
Michael Frantz, president of Frantz Wholesale Nursery in Hickman, Calif., said specialty crop producers like him struggle to find effective insurance to mitigate the “enormous” risks they incur.
He noted that his nursery grows over 700 varieties of plants, with 10,000 individual crops growing at any time. Some of those only reside on the farm for a few weeks, while others like oak trees can take as long as eight years before they can be shipped to customers.
According to Frantz, crop insurance programs in place for Title 1 crops to cover catastrophic and nature-related events rarely help him due to his extreme crop diversity. That theme was echoed by others throughout the hearing.
In many cases, available crop insurance programs require a minimum 50% damage threshold before farmers get paid. This is problematic for farmers who may have one entire crop wiped out by an event, while other crops are left unscathed. Fritz suggested assessing damage in square footage rather than acreage as a potential way to better protect specialty crop growers.
Dana Brennan, vice president of corporate affairs for Grimmway Farms in Bakersfield, Calif., noted that only 5% of farm bill funding goes to specialty crop producers. She urged lawmakers to modernize the farm safety net. While major commodity crops benefit from established, widely used insurance programs, Brennan said many specialty crop producers don’t have access to viable, tailored risk management options.
“Congress must prioritize risk management solutions that address the full spectrum of U.S. agriculture, encompassing both large and small farms, as well as row crops and specialty crops, in a manner that is both efficient and cost-effective,” she said.
Trade concerns
Brennan noted that fresh produce is one of North America’s most actively traded crops. Yet, according to her, nontariff barriers such as excessive revenue limits and packaging standards block U.S. exports.
“This industry, frankly, is central to America’s health, economy and food security,” Brennan said. “It deserves policy support that matches that value.”
Frantz praised Thompson and his staff for helping to secure a tariff exemption for peat moss, which he said has saved specialty crop farmers “millions of dollars.” Still, he cautioned that tariffs remain on other input products, contributing to inflationary pressures.
Those concerns were echoed by several lawmakers, including Austin Scott, R-Ga., who suggested “revisiting” tariffs on ag machinery.
“Machinery that’s being brought into the United States that we use in crop production should not be tariffed,” Scott said.
Labor challenges
Scott also asked the witness from the specialty crop sector to discuss how they would like to see Congress reform ag labor legislation.
Brennan said she supports the Farm Workforce Modernization Act. That bill, which has been introduced on multiple occasions but never passed, would establish new pathways to legal residency for immigrant farm workers, streamline the H-2A application process and change the way wage rates are calculated.
Public investment remains critical
Tim Boring, director of the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, spoke on behalf of the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture. He said specialty block grant funding has been instrumental in keeping farmers one step ahead of pest and disease threats.
Still, he said he worries that the lack of a full farm bill will leave specialty crop growers in worse shape. According to him, the next farm bill will effectively dictate how the nation feeds itself by itself.
“Unfortunately, for many specialty crops, times have never been more tenuous,” Boring said. “In Michigan, specialty crops once offered a way for farmers to diversify. But these days, instead of growing their operations, many farmers are debating if they can stay in business.”
That, he said, is because they are facing trade uncertainty, rising input costs, climate variability, labor constraints, and threats of pests and disease. This makes specialty crops harder to grow, more difficult to get to market and more challenging to get to consumers than ever, Boring said.
Boring said farmers in his state are utilizing specialty crop block grant funding to address pest pressures and build climate resiliency. Despite this, Michigan cherry farmers’ yields were down significantly in 2024 to abnormal early-season weather events, which drove unprecedented insect and disease pressures later in the year. This year, an early-spring frost reduced yields by 30% to 90% across the state.
“As these recent yield reductions show, the threats are imminent and significant,” Boring said. “I appreciate H.R. 1 [One Big Beautiful Bill Act] expanding funding for the program. … I believe the next farm bill should affirm that continued support and continued research investment.”