Tester testifies: fights agains consolidation
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News from the office of Senator Tester
U.S. SENATE — We made a lot of progress last week on our fight against consolidation in the agriculture industry.
Consolidation in any industry is never good, and the ag industry is no exception. It means capitalism isn’t working, and in the meatpacking industry’s case, it’s killing rural America—putting generational ranchers out of business and hurting consumers at the beef case by inflating prices.
That’s why I was thrilled to testify in support of two of my bipartisan ag transparency and competition bills as they were reviewed by the Senate Agriculture Committee last week.
I’ve been fighting for more transparency in the industry for years. Transparency is critical for ensuring Montana ranchers are getting a fair price at the farm gate, and consumers are getting a fair price at the grocery counter.
We’re continuing to educate folks and shine light on this critical issue every chance we get, so I was glad to join Lawrence O’Donnell on air to explain how putting more competition in the marketplace will benefit producers AND consumers.
In Montana and across the nation, there’s strong grassroots support behind my Cattle Price Discovery and Transparency Act and my Meat Packing Special Investigator Act, because Montanans know that capitalism only works when there’s competition.
Competitive markets are essential for a vibrant rural America, and as anticompetitive practices from the corporate ag world drive family producers out of business, we’re seeing rural America dry up.
That’s why I took to the Senate floor to sound the alarm—urging my colleagues to act on my bills to preserve our nation’s long-held and necessary tradition of family farm agriculture.
Our pressure is working, folks. This critical issue is finally getting the spotlight it deserves, but I won’t stop until real changes are made and both Montana families and producers can make ends meet.
