Speculation Developing Over How Biden Will Use Commodity Credit Corporation

Speculation is brewing over how the new Biden administration may use the Commodity Credit Corporation. 

The CCC, as it’s known, was used by the Trump-era Department of Agriculture to provide trade relief to farmers, including Market Facilitation Program payments. 

The CCC has a $30 billion fund, with several ideas on how to use the funding, setting up a “tug of war over its limited resources,” according to Politico. 

Incoming Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack has indicated that he has the authority to implement a carbon bank for farmers through the CCC. 

President Joe Biden’s stimulus plan also identified the CCC as a means to provide economic relief for restaurants suffering during the pandemic. 

Meanwhile, Senate Agriculture Committee Chair Debbie Stabenow, a Michigan Democrat, told reporters last week, farmers can be leaders in the climate crisis. 

She says her focus will be on “voluntary, producer-led opportunities” to allow farmers to cut down emissions and create new income sources.

(Story Courtesy of the NAFB News Service)