AMERICAN FARM BUREAU FEDERATION

The American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to promoting, protecting, and representing the interests of U.S. farmers. More than five million members in 50 states and Puerto Rico belong to the AFBF, making it the largest U.S. farm organization. The AFBF is a federation of 2,800 county farm organizations, which elect representatives to state farm bureaus. The organization maintains its general headquarters in Park Ridge, Illinois, and has an office in Washington, D.C. From these offices the AFBF staff offers many services and programs for state and county farm bureaus and members.

The first county farm bureau was formed in Broome County, New York, in 1911. The word bureau in farm bureau is used because the first organization was formed as a "bureau" of the local chamber of commerce. Missouri was the first state to form a statewide organization of farm bureaus in 1915. The AFBF was founded in 1919 when a small group of farmers from 30 state bureaus gathered in Chicago, Illinois. The AFBF soon became a voice for agriculture at the national level, lobbying Congress for passage of legislation favorable to farmers.

The AFBF relies on its 2,800 county bureaus for direction and support. Thousands of volunteer leaders serve on county farm bureau boards and committees. Members organize social outings, educational workshops, political action and community forums, and other programs and services for farm families.

State bureaus adopt policies and name delegates to represent them at the AFBF annual meeting. Policies adopted by voting delegates govern the federation. These policies deal with many issues, including the use of natural resources, taxation, property rights, services to the farm community, trade, food safety and quality, and other issues that affect rural America.

The AFBF has historically been a conservative organization, favoring flexible price supports for crops and a minimum of government regulation and oversight. Its government relations division employs a number of registered lobbyists who are specialists on farm policy, trade, budget and taxes, farm credit, labor, transportation, conservation, and the environment. These individuals maintain daily contact with Congress and regulatory agencies and appear before congressional committees.

The AFBF's public policy division is responsible for research, education, and policy support for AFBF and the state farm bureaus. Staff members provide analysis and information on current issues, including property rights, health care, clean water, endangered species, animal welfare, farm programs, and dairy policy. One of the hottest issues in the late 1990s and early 2000s has concerned the current and future role of biotechnology in agriculture. Biotechnology and other technological developments including computers, lasers, and robots are also issues being closely followed by AFBF and the county and state farm bureaus. Additionally, the AFBF has sought to play a major role in such areas as the continuing development of renewable fuels and international trade. The division also coordinates several special farm bureau activities, including commodity advisory committees, annual crop surveys, and various national seminars and conferences on policy issues.

The federation's communication division operates a computerized marketing, news, and weather system, which delivers the latest news, market information, u.s. department of agriculture news, and agricultural weather reports to subscribers by satellite.

The American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture, founded in 1967, funds research on agricultural issues. The foundation is funded by gifts from individuals, county and state farm bureaus, corporations, and foundations. The foundation has funded research on animal waste management, pesticide use, new methods of helping endangered species, and animal welfare education. The foundation has also been active in numerous educational outreach programs including "Agriculture in the Classroom," awards and contests, farm tours and field days, garden and planting projects, mobile classroom units, and newsletters, books, and videos.

further readings

American Farm Bureau. Available online at <www.fb.org> (accessed May 30, 2003).

Howard, R. P. 1982. James R. Howard and the Farm Bureau. Ames, IA: Iowa State Univ. Press.

Woell, Melvin. 1990. Farm Bureau Architects: Through Four Decades. Dubuque, IA: Kendall-Hunt.

cross-references

Farm Credit Administration.

American Farm Bureau Federation. The American Farm Bureau Federation promotes the economic and educational interests of farmers. Coordinating a network of state and county bureaus, the Farm Bureau has helped shape American agricultural practices and policies since its formation in 1919. With about four million members, it is the nation's largest general farm organization. The most active support comes from the Middle West, where many of its original members resided. The organization's policies are generally conservative.

The Farm Bureau developed alongside the federal government's county agricultural education and extension system in the 1920s and 1930s. Both institutions sought to bring the latest scientific and technical advances to American agricultural producers. In many areas the bureau underwrote the cost of county extension agents who demonstrated new methods to farmers. This direct cooperation between the Farm Bureau and the government was strongest in the 1930s under the New Deal Era's Agricultural Adjustment Administration. Critics charged that this arrangement unfairly benefited only “modern,” capital‐intensive farmers. The Farm Bureau responded that it was aiding the work and educational efforts of land‐grant colleges and state agricultural experiment stations for the benefit of all farmers. While continuing to support the government's farmer education programs, the federation from the early 1940s on promoted its own educational efforts.

The federation also has acted as a major lobbying organization for agricultural legislation. During the Great Depression and the New Deal it developed or supported farm legislation that emphasized soil and water conservation, rural electrification, price supports, protective tariffs, and acreage‐control regulations. After World War II the Farm Bureau recommended measures to reduce farmers' dependence on federal programs and to eliminate production quotas—a position rooted in its traditional belief in minimal government interference and control in a free‐market agricultural economy.

The American Farm Bureau Federation has historically worked to open or expand markets for farm products as the best way to relieve farmers' economic problems, maintain high demand for American agricultural goods, and reduce crop surpluses. For many years the federation has urged local farmers to form marketing cooperatives to sell their products and to operate supply cooperatives, such as those for fuel or electricity, to reduce costs. The Farm Bureau also promotes farm safety and funds research for new uses of farm products.
See also Agriculture: Since 1920.

Bibliography

Grant McConnell , The Decline of Agrarian Democracy, 1953.
Christiana McFadyen Campbell , The Farm Bureau: A Study of the Making of National Farm Policy 1933–40, 1962.

Cameron L. Saffell