By Patrick J. Wolf, Executive Director, Idaho Farmers
Family farms are the foundation of Idaho agriculture. They are also increasingly vulnerable. Rising land prices, estate tax burdens, competition from consolidated operations, and the sheer difficulty of making a living on the land are pushing family-scale producers to the margins.
At Idaho Farmers, we are committed to advocating for policies that recognize the unique value and challenges of family farming operations. That means supporting beginning farmer programs, advocating for fair crop insurance design, promoting agricultural lending that works for mid-size operations, and defending farmland preservation tools that keep productive ground in production.
The future of Idaho agriculture depends on whether the next generation can enter farming and succeed. That is not just an economic question. It is a question about the kind of state we want to be.