The Effects of the EPA & USDA On Agriculture Informative News Article 12-4-21
Athens, GA–– The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) play a massive role in the U.S. agricultural industry, affecting even the smallest of farmers to the biggest. The EPA largely holds responsibility for assuring that the consumers of agricultural products and byproducts are knowledgeable of the mechanisms for producing what they eat, but what they contain, to the smallest detail. The EPA has enacted regulations in numerous agricultural fields, most enacting the mandatory labeling of products and the requirement of permits to do agriculture. They have established regulations in all fields of agriculture. Livestock, poultry, aquaculture, crop production, drinking water, farm facilities, fuel, equipment, buildings, construction, waste, air emissions, and chemical handling. They have detailed regulations in all of these fields, and their respective subfields, of which there are plenty of. The EPA has established its foothold in the common farmer’s life in order to better the agricultural industry in favor of the consumer and abide by modern cleanliness assurance standards. These regulations not only allow for the consumer to be knowledgeable but also to encourage the producer to better their products. The regulations it has enacted have made the agricultural industry safer and free of the most possible caution.
The USDA is an incentivizer of the agricultural industry and the supporter of farmers. The USDA invests in pro-agriculture infrastructure and the farmers themselves. The USDA offers assistance to farmers when a crisis hits, crop insurance, disaster assistance, provide technical assistance, and teaching farmers about conservation practices. The department is a safety net for America’s farmers and even grants loans/grants to aspiring farmers and agricultural producers to incentivize and grow the industry even if in the slightest manner. The recent passage of the infrastructure bill has also prompted the USDA to commence operations to incentivize the industry even more. The USDA hopes to boost the slumping growth in the agricultural industry in past years and renew its once vibrant industry into what it once was.