The American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) presents itself as an organization for small family farmers, but many of its actions suggest otherwise. Even its touted membership of 5.4 million members is coming into question -- the U.S. Department of Agriculture reports only 2.3 million Americans meet the definition of being a farmer. John Hansen, president of the Nebraska Farmers Union, says that "the vast majority of members are people who just joined for the insurance benefits," and these members have no say in AFBF policy. Critics say that AFBF promotes a corporate, rather than family, farm agenda, and allies itself with non-farm-related industries. In recent years, the group has taken anti-environmental stances, including endorsing major changes to the Endangered Species Act, supporting the United States' withdrawal from the Kyoto Protocol global warming treaty, and opposing predator reintroductions. Interestingly, there is little agreement regarding at what level the organization's policies are made -- locally or nationally. The current president, Bob Stallman, claims that AFBF's positions come from the grassroots membership and states that he wishes he had more control over policy. Hansen, however, charges that AFBF policies are dictated from the Washington headquarters. Small farmers have been hit the most by AFBF farming and trade policies. According to a 2000 Defenders of Wildlife report, "Amber Waves of Gain," AFBF "is allied with some of the nation's biggest agribusinesses,” and has "large investments in the automobile, oil, and pesticide industries." The environment most definitely takes a hit from the American Farm Bureau. "It's no coincidence that the erosion of family farm income parallels rapid species decline, water pollution, and food chain toxicity," says Defenders' Scotty Johnson. It seems clear from the Farm Bureau's positions that they are not a friend of either the family farm or the environment.

Ran 6/7/04