U.S. Rep. Bryan Steil (R-WI) led several of his Republican congressional colleagues in urging President Joe Biden to take swift action against record high fertilizer prices in an effort to provide relief to America’s farmers and families.
“Fertilizer prices are a major expense for producers and this crisis will further exacerbate rising food prices and hurt rural economies,” wrote Rep. Steil and five members, including U.S. Rep. Ann Wagner (R-MO), in a May 27 letter sent to President Biden.
The lawmakers pointed out that they were frustrated by recent comments made by United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Director Samantha Power that “raise concerns that your administration is not taking the problem seriously,” according to their letter.
“During an interview in response to a question on global food shortages, Powers said, ‘[w]e’re working with countries to think about natural solutions like manure and compost. And this may hasten transitions that would have been in the interest of farmers to make eventually anyway. So never let a good crisis go to waste,’” they wrote.
Rep. Steil and his colleagues requested that the president clarify his administration’s position on the fertilizer crisis by answering several questions, including if it is the official position of the administration that the spike in fertilizer prices is a positive outcome, and if the administration thinks that farmers should move away from using fertilizer, among others.
“We have strong concerns that Director Powers’ statements reflect your administration’s misunderstanding of our ability to replace the need for fertilizer,” Rep. Steil and the lawmakers wrote. “America needs real action to increase fertilizer production, not empty rhetoric.”