Source: POLITICO'S MORNING AGRICULTURE, 2/7/22

Senate Agriculture Committee member Cory Booker (D-N.J.) is under fire from his House Ag counterparts after his appearance in a New York Times Opinion video that blasted the powerful farm lobby and the ag industry it represents as the largest culprits behind the greenhouse gas emissions that are fueling climate change.

“The opinion piece made sweeping, inaccurate statements about American agriculture. It was made worse by some members of Congress, including Sen. Cory Booker, who cooperated with the project,” said Rep. Dusty Johnson (R-S.D.) during a House Ag hearing on Thursday.

Democrats told MA they were concerned that Booker’s comments and appearance in the video could set back any progress the Biden administration and ag committees have made by pushing an incentive-based approach to enlisting farmers and ranchers in the fight against climate change, instead of strict regulations to curb emissions.

Booker, however, is not backing down: “The vast majority of our family farmers and ranchers are good stewards of their land, and with better federal farm policy they will do even more,” Booker told your host in a statement. “Unfortunately, the Big Ag lobby continues to pretend they speak for all of agriculture in an attempt to preserve a status quo that rakes in billions for agribusiness at the expense of our farmers, our communities, and the planet.”

It’s not a new take: Booker has introduced, and reintroduced, legislation aimed at overhauling the meat industry and banning large-scale livestock farms known as concentrated animal feeding operations. In a Q&A with POLITICO last year , the senator cited CAFOs and their impact on health and the environment as one reason he grew interested in agriculture and food policy.