2016 presidential candidates on agriculture and food policy

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2016 Presidential Election Date: November 8, 2016

Candidates Winner: Donald Trump (R) Hillary Clinton (D) • Jill Stein (G) • Gary Johnson (L) • Vice presidential candidates

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This page was current as of the 2016 election.

Simply put, food is necessary for survival. The policies and regulations that impact the food supply and food production, however, can be complex. In 2016, more Americans embraced healthier food options and ate fast food less frequently. There were five times more farmers markets in the U.S. in 2014 than there were in 1994 and restaurants serving locally sourced foods were gaining popularity.

In 2016, Americans were also increasingly concerned with food additives and labeling, especially genetically modified foods or GMOs. In recent years, the federal government promoted healthy eating by eliminating trans fats from the food supply, issuing healthier school lunch dietary guidelines, and revising dietary guidelines for Americans to focus on maintaining good health and reducing the risk of disease. In addition, the federal government worked to address outbreaks of foodborne illnesses and concerns over food safety by granting the Food and Drug Administration new power to regulate the safe production of food and the authority to recall foods.

Read what the 2016 candidates and their respective party platforms said about agriculture and food policy below.

Interested in reading more about the 2016 candidates' stances on issues related to agriculture and food policy? Ballotpedia also covered what the candidates said about health issues and the environment.

OVERVIEW OF CANDIDATE POSITIONS

Hillary Clinton planned to encourage investment in rural small businesses through simplified regulations for community banks, improving infrastructure, and expanding development tax credits. She also called for increasing funding for new farmers, promoting clean energy leadership, and improving educational opportunities.

Donald Trump supported the Renewable Fuel Standard and called for separating the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program from the farm bill.

Jill Stein supported subsidizing small farmers and community farms instead of agribusiness and creating more "sustainable organic agriculture" jobs. Stein believed the "globalized industrial factory" food system was unhealthy and generates greenhouse gases.

Gary Johnson believed that knowing what is in food was "absolutely essential" for basic safety.

Democratic ticket

Hillary Clinton

• Hillary Clinton unveiled her plan to support coal-dependent communities on November 12, 2015. She proposed repurposing mine lands and power plant sites for forestry, agriculture, and manufacturing; electrifying dams on federal land; and supporting local food and agriculture businesses in Central Appalachia.

• On August 26, 2015, Clinton introduced her plan to strengthen rural communities with a speech in Iowa and a corresponding white paper on her website. She proposed to take the following actions:
  • Increase the number of Rural Business Investment Companies to develop more jobs and build "capital networks."
  • Simplify regulations for community banks in rural areas to facilitate the funding of small businesses.
  • Increase access to high-speed broadband technology.
  • Permanently establish and expand the New Markets Tax Credit, which "was designed to increase the flow of capital to businesses and low income communities by providing a modest tax incentive to private investors."
  • Strengthen U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) grant programs, like the USDA StrikeForce Initiative, increasing their flexibility and ability to target rural development programs.
  • Double funding for the Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development program and work to decrease student debt through the New College Compact.
  • Double funding for the Farmers Market Promotion Program and the Local Food Promotion Program to strengthen local food systems.
  • Improve the targeted distribution of federal resources for disaster assistance.
  • Enact comprehensive immigration reform that acknowledges the contribution of immigrants and migrant workers to agriculture.
  • Fully fund the Environmental Quality Incentive Programs and initiatives like the Regional Conservation Partnership Program.
  • Strengthen the Renewable Fuel Standard.
  • Encourage the installation of 500 million solar panels and the production of sufficient clean renewable energy to power every home in the U.S. within a decade through the Clean Energy Challenge.
  • Double funding for Early Head Start to increase access to preschool education for rural children.
  • Improve access to healthcare through telemedicine and rural health clinics.

• In December 2007, Clinton voted in favor of an amendment to HR 2419 - Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008, that would have limited the amount of subsidies that married couples deriving a portion of their income from farming or related activities could receive.

• Clinton voted in favor of the conference report on HR 2744 - Agriculture, Rural Development and FDA Appropriations Act of 2006. This law established appropriations for the Agricultural Research Service, Farm Service Agency, Rural Community Advancement Program, Rural Electrification and Telecommunications Loans Program, and Rural Housing Insurance Fund Program.

• In May 2006, Clinton voted against an amendment to HR 4939 - Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2006, that would have removed a $6 million subsidy for sugarcane growers in Hawaii.

• Read more of Hillary Clinton's public statements on 2016 campaign issues.

The 2016 Democratic Party Platform on agriculture

“ Investing in Rural America We will work to build a stronger rural and agricultural economy. Democrats will increase funding to support the next generation of farmers and ranchers, with particular attention given to promoting environmentally sustainable agricultural practices. We will encourage programs to protect and enhance family farms, a cherished way of life for millions of Americans. We will expand local food markets and regional food systems and provide a focused safety net to assist family operations that need support during challenging times. And we will promote clean energy leadership and collaborative stewardship of our natural resources, while expanding opportunities in rural communities across America. While the EPA’s new Agricultural Worker Protection Standard goes a long way to protect farmworkers from harmful pesticides and herbicides, we recognize there is a lot more we can do. The Democratic Party supports stronger agricultural worker protections including regulation of work hours, elimination of child labor, ensuring adequate housing for migrant workers, and sanitary facilities in the field. Democrats will spur investment to power the rural economy. We support strengthening rural water, sewer, and broadband infrastructure to make rural businesses more competitive. We will expand access to equity capital for businesses and expand the New Markets Tax Credit to better serve rural small businesses. We will promote collaborative stewardship of our natural resources, while developing clean fuels that will grow our economy, lower our energy bills, combat climate change, and make America the clean energy superpower of the 21st century. We will provide assistance to producers who conserve and improve natural resources on their farms and double loan guarantees that support the bio-based economy’s dynamic growth. ” —2016 Democratic Party Platform

Tim Kaine

• On February 4, 2014, Tim Kaine joined 46 other Democratic senators to approve the Federal Agriculture Reform and Risk Management Act of 2013, H.R. 2642, also known as the Farm Bill. It passed the Senate with a vote of 68-32. The nearly 1,000-page, $1 trillion bill reformed and continued Department of Agriculture programs through 2018. The bill expanded crop insurance for farmers and created new subsidies for rice and peanut growers that are triggered when prices drop. The bill also cut food stamps an average of $90 per month for 1.7 million people in 15 states.
• Kaine, U.S. Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.), and a bipartisan group of nine senators wrote to the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Office of the United States Trade Representative in January 2014 urging them to provide for open markets and fair trade of U.S. chicken products.

• Read more of Tim Kaine's public statements on 2016 campaign issues.

Republican ticket

Donald Trump

• On August 27, 2016, Trump spoke about agricultural policy at a campaign event in Iowa, saying, “Family farms are the backbone of this country. We are going to end the EPA intrusion into your family homes and your family farms. We are going to protect the Renewable Fuel Standard, eliminate job-killing regulations like the Waters of the U.S. rule, and provide desperately-needed tax relief. … We are going to end this war on the American farmer. That includes our plan to lower the tax rate on family farms down to 15 percent, and to stop the double-taxation of family farms at death – helping to ensure that the family farm tradition in Iowa continues to thrive and flourish.”

• In July 2016, Trump selected cattle farmer Charles Herbster to lead his agriculture and rural advisory committee. According to Herbster, a primary agricultural concern for the campaign is reducing regulation.

• Politico reported in May 2016 that "Trump endorses crop insurance, a top priority for farmers, and like House Speaker Paul Ryan, advocates separating the food stamp program from the farm bill, adding that he believes 'agriculture is not about food — it is about national security,' according to another campaign response. That idea is divisive among farm-state lawmakers because it threatens the urban-rural coalition that has won passage of the farm bill every five years."

• Speaking at the Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit on January 19, 2016, Trump expressed support for the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), saying, "I will encourage Congress to be cautious in attempting to change any part of the RFS. Energy independence is a requirement if America is to become great again."
• Read more of Donald Trump's public statements on 2016 campaign issues.

The 2016 Republican Party Platform on agriculture and food policy

“ America’s Natural Resources: Agriculture We are the party of America’s growers, producers, farmers, ranchers, foresters, miners, commercial fishermen, and all those who bring from the earth the crops, minerals, energy, and the bounties of our seas that are the lifeblood of our economy. Their labor and ingenuity, their determination in bad times and love of the land at all times, powers our economy, creates millions of jobs, and feeds billions of people around the world. Only a few years ago, a bipartisan consensus in government valued the role of extractive industries and rewarded their enterprise by minimizing its interference with their work. That has radically changed. We look in vain within the Democratic Party for leaders who will speak for the people of agriculture, energy and mineral production. Abundant Harvests Agricultural production and exports are central to the Republican agenda for jobs, growth, expanded trade, and prosperity. Because our farmers and ranchers care for the land, the United States does not depend on foreign imports for sustenance. Americans spend a smaller percentage of their income on food than any other nation. On average, one American farm produces enough food to feed 155 people. No other nation has been as generous with food aid to the needy. We have good reason to celebrate our domestic security in food. We are the largest agricultural exporter in the world, and our exports are vital for other sectors of our economy. Those exports drive additional economic growth as each dollar of agricultural exports generates another $1.27 in business activity. That is why we remain committed to expanding trade opportunities and opening new markets for agriculture. Under a Republican president, America’s trade negotiators will insist that our global trading partners adhere to science-based standards with regard to food and health regulations. We will not tolerate the use of bogus science and scare tactics to bar our products from foreign markets, nor will we allow insufficient health and safety standards for products imported for our consumption. We must also ensure that domestic policies do not compromise our global competitiveness through overregulation and undue interference in the marketplace. There is growing recognition that federal dairy policies, crafted during the Great Depression, are increasingly an impediment to the ability of our dairy producers to meet the expected doubling in global demand coming by 2030. We oppose the policies pushed by special interest groups seeking to stop or make more expensive our current system of safe, efficient, and humane production of meat. Congress has repeatedly had to block the current Administration’s draconian rules concerning the marketing of poultry and livestock. This regulatory impulse must be curbed, not on a case-by-case basis, but through a fundamental restructuring of the regulatory process. In the meantime, the intrusive and expensive federal mandates on food options and menu labeling should be ended as soon as possible by a Republican Congress. We oppose the mandatory labeling of genetically modified food, which has proven to be safe, healthy, and a literal life-saver for millions in the developing world. The Democratic Administration’s sustained support for additional regulation of agriculture has directly resulted in higher costs of production for those who produce the food we eat. This federal regulatory overreach has resulted and will continue to result in higher food prices for Americans. These higher food costs are particularly challenging for those Americans struggling to make ends meet. Like the rest of the economy, agriculture has suffered through eight years of the Democrats’ regulatory juggernaut, particularly from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). States, not Washington bureaucrats, are best equipped to engage farmers and ranchers to develop sound farm oversight policies. The EPA’s Waters of the United States (WOTUS) rule, issued jointly with the Army Corps of Engineers, is a travesty. It extends the government’s jurisdiction over navigable waters into the micro-management of puddles and ditches on farms, ranches, and other privately-held property. Ditches, dry creek beds, stock ponds, prairie potholes, and other nonnavigable wet areas are already regulated by the states. WOTUS is now subject to judicial review and must be invalidated, but that will not be sufficient. Unelected bureaucrats must be stopped from furthering the Democratic Party’s political agenda through regulatory demands forced upon citizens and businesses beyond that which is required by law. We must never allow federal agencies to seize control of state waters, watersheds, or groundwater. State waters, watersheds, and groundwater must be the purview of the sovereign states. Farmers and ranchers are among this country’s leading conservationists. Modern farm practices and technologies, supported by programs from the Department of Agriculture, have led to reduced erosion, improved water and air quality, increased wildlife habitat, all the while maintaining improved agricultural yields. This stewardship of the land benefits everyone, and we remain committed to conservation policies based on the preservation, not the restriction, of working lands. For this reason, ranching on public lands must be fostered, developed, and encouraged. This includes providing for an abundant water supply for America’s farmers, ranchers, and their communities. Farming and ranching remain high-risk endeavors, and they cannot be isolated from market forces. No segment of agriculture can expect treatment so favorable that it seriously disadvantages workers in other trades. Federal programs to assist farmers in managing risk must be as cost-effective as they are functional, offering tools that can improve producers’ ability to operate when times are tough while remaining affordable to the taxpayers. Even so, the expansion of agricultural exports through the vigorous opening of new markets around the world is the surest path to farm security. While uncertainty about natural weather and markets is a risk farmers and ranchers always face, government should not add to their uncertainty by inaction and delay. Thanks in large part to a lack of leadership from the current Administration and congressional Democrats, the last Farm Bill took far too long to enact, creating instability about farm policy for nearly two years. Republicans are dedicated to leading this country forward, which includes getting things done on time, including the next Farm Bill. The Democrats play politics with farm security. Much of the Democrats’ delay had nothing to do with the vital role of American agriculture. It concerned their efforts to expand welfare through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which now comprises more than 70 percent of all farm bill spending. During the last eight years of a Democratic Administration, nearly all the work requirements for able-bodied adults, instituted by our landmark welfare reform of 1996, have been removed. We will restore those provisions and, to correct a mistake made when the Food Stamp program was first created in 1964, separate the administration of SNAP from the Department of Agriculture. Like all other sectors of our society, agriculture is directly impacted by the constant advance in technology. Agriculture now faces a revolution in the generation of “Big Data” — information produced not only through public oversight of regulations and programs, but also from private business records of farming and ranching operations. In the interest of protecting the safety of our farmers and ranchers, we will advance policies to protect the security, privacy, and most of all, the private ownership of individual farmers’ and ranchers’ data. The U. S. Forest Service, within the Department of Agriculture, controls around 200 million acres of land with enormous natural resources, especially timber, a renewable resource providing jobs for thousands of workers that should be used to the best economic potential for the nation. Many of our national forests are in worsening health with the threat of invasive species, insect mortality, and the severe risk of wildfire. The increase in catastrophic wildfires has been needlessly killing millions of animals and destroying homes and watersheds for decades in the western states. The expense to suppress wildfires related to failed federal forest policies continues to increase. When timber is managed properly, the renewable crops will result in fewer wildfires and, at the same time, produce jobs in the timber industry for countless families. We believe in promoting active, sustainable management of our forests and that states can best manage our forests to improve forest health and keep communities safe. ” —2016 Republican Party Platform

Mike Pence

• In December 2011, Mike Pence co-sponsored H.R.1633 - the Farm Dust Regulation Prevention Act of 2011, which proposed prohibiting the Environmental Protection Agency "from proposing, finalizing, implementing, or enforcing any regulation revising the national primary ambient air quality standard or the national secondary ambient air quality standard applicable to particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter greater than 2.5 micrometers under the Clean Air Act (CAA) for one year."

• In 2002, Mike Pence voted for H.R.2646 - the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002, which increased farm subsidies. It became law on May 13, 2002.

• After President George W. Bush signed the bill, Pence said, "The President recognizes the difficulties American farmers face, both from unfair trade barriers in other countries and tough economic times in the United States. This new law will curb the need for ad hoc expenditures, increase funding for conservation programs, reduce payment limitations and enable additional agricultural research. I am confident that this farm bill will provide the necessary resources to keep farmers in Indiana and across America competitive in a global marketplace."

• Read more of Mike Pence's public statements on 2016 campaign issues.

Green candidate

Jill Stein

• In an August 2012 interview with Taylor Peck of iSideWith, Jill Stein said, "Our food system should be treated for what it is and not as a tool for agribusiness and market share. Our current subsidies drive the food system towards a very unhealthy industrialized FrankenFood type system. Those subsidies need to be redirected to support small farmers and to support community farms and the institutions that can provide real food in a way that is sustainable for the long haul. That means localized food systems rather than this globalized industrial factory system which is extremely unhealthy for the economy, farmers and for people who eat the food. The planet is being poisoned by the pesticides and the greenhouse gases that are being produced by the current system."

• On her 2012 presidential campaign website, Stein supported a jobs creation program which included opportunities in "sustainable organic agriculture."
• Read more of Jill Stein's public statements on 2016 campaign issues.

The 2016 Green Party Platform on agriculture

“ I. Agriculture Food is a necessity and a fundamental human right. All people have a right to adequate, safe, nutritional and high quality food; and those who grow it have a right to a fair return for their labor. Our current food system is dominated by centralized agribusiness and unsustainable practices that threaten our food security, degrade the environment, destroy communities, and squeeze out family farmers. Our so-called cheap food comes at the expense of the exploitation of our farmers along with the oppression of third world peoples, inhumane treatment of animals, pollution of air and water, and degradation of our land. The agricultural system for the 21st Century must provide a high quality of life for farmers, nutritious and safe food for consumers, and reward farming methods that enhance the quality of water, soil, and air, and the beauty of the landscape. According to the 2006 United Nations "Livestock's Long Shadow" report and the World Watch Institute's 2009 article "Livestock and Climate Change," the livestock sector is one of the most significant contributors to our most serious environmental problems, including global warming, land degradation, air and water pollution, and loss of biodiversity. 1. We encourage legislation that assists new farmers and ranchers, that promotes widespread ownership to small and medium-sized farms and ranches, and that revitalizes and repopulates rural communities and promotes sustainable development and stewardship. 2. We support new farming and growing opportunities and urge the inclusion of non-traditional crops and foods in farm programs. 3. We advocate regionalizing our food system and decentralizing agriculture lands, production, and distribution. We encourage public support for producer and consumer cooperatives, community kitchens, Community Supported Agriculture, urban agriculture, and community farms and gardens. 4. We advocate the creation of a Food Policy Council composed of farmers, including small farmers and consumers, to oversee the USDA and all food policies at the local, state, and national level. This council should adjudicate conflicts of interest that arise when industries police themselves. 5. We support the highest organic standards (California Organic Certification Standards, for example). We advocate shifting price supports and government subsidies to organic food products so that they will be competitive with chemically produced food. We believe that everyone, not just the wealthy, must be able to afford safe and healthy food. 6. We urge the banning of sewage sludge or hazardous wastes as fertilizer, and of irradiation and the use of genetic engineering in all food production. 7. We would phase-out man-made pesticides and artificial fertilizers. We support Integrated Pest Management techniques as an alternative to chemical-based agriculture. 8. Food prices ought to reflect the true cost of food, including the health effects of eating processed foods, antibiotic resistance, pesticide effects on growers and consumers, soil erosion, water pollution, pesticide drift, and air pollution. Indirect costs (loss of rural communities, a heavily subsidized transportation system, cost of the military necessary to defend cheap oil, and reduced security), though more difficult to calculate, should be factored into the cost of our highly centralized food system. 9. World hunger can best be addressed by food security—being self-sufficient for basic needs. Overpopulation is largely a consequence, not simply a cause, of poverty and environmental destruction, and all remedial actions must address living standards and food security through sustainable production. 10. Because of the tremendous amount of energy used in agriculture, we support farm subsidies to encourage the transition from dirty fuels to clean renewable energy as one of the most effective ways to move our country to a sustainable future. 11. We support legislation that provides energy and fuel conservation through rotational grazing, cover-crop rotations, nitrogen-fixing systems, and fuel-free, clean renewable energy development on the farm. 12. We encourage states to promote net-metering to make decentralized energy production economically viable. 13. Animal farming must be practiced in ethically and environmentally sustainable ways. We support a rapid phase out of confined animal feeding operations (CAFOs) not only because of their adverse impact on the environment, but also on food safety (e.g. disease epidemics), public health, and animal protection. 14. Applying the Precautionary Principle to genetically modified organisms (GMOs), we support a moratorium until safety can be demonstrated by independent (non-corporate funded), long-term tests for food safety, genetic drift, resistance, soil health, effects on non-target organisms, and cumulative interactions. Most importantly, we support the growing international demand to eliminate patent rights for genetic material, life forms, gene-splicing techniques, and bio-chemicals derived from them. This position is defined by the Treaty to Share the Genetic Commons, which is available through the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy. The implications of corporate takeover and the resulting monopolization of genetic intellectual property by the bioengineering industry are immense. 15. We support mandatory, full-disclosure food and fiber labeling. A consumer has the right to know the contents in their food and fiber, how they were produced, and where they come from. Labels should address the presence of GMOs, use of irradiation, pesticide application (in production, transport, storage, and retail), and the country of origin. 16. We support the restoration of farmlands to black families who have been discriminated against and who have lost, or are about to lose, their farms as a result. Greens will work for a meaningful remedy to restore black farmers' unencumbered ownership of their land. ” —2016 Green Party Platform

Libertarian candidate

Gary Johnson

• In July 2012, Johnson addressed the issue of products containing GMO ingredients in an email to ProCon.org. He wrote, “While I generally resist the idea of government mandates, public safety is a legitimate government function.” He continued, “For many people, certain food ingredients can do serious harm, and knowing what is in food is absolutely essential. For millions of Americans … knowing what we are eating is not a matter of preference or convenience, (but) rather is an issue of basic safety.”

• In August 2001, while governor of New Mexico, Johnson signed a resolution supporting a national block grant program for agricultural stewardship. Congress approved the program in 2002. It allowed states to receive grants from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to address environmental threats.

• Read more of Gary Johnson's public statements on 2016 campaign issues.

The 2016 Libertarian Party Platform on agriculture and food policy
The 2016 Libertarian Party Platform does not specifically address agriculture and food policy.

Withdrawn candidates

Democrats

• Lincoln Chafee on agriculture and food policy
• Martin O'Malley on agriculture and food policy
• Bernie Sanders on agriculture and food policy
• Jim Webb on agriculture and food policy

Republicans

• Ben Carson on agriculture and food policy
• Chris Christie on agriculture and food policy
• Ted Cruz on agriculture and food policy
• Carly Fiorina on agriculture and food policy
• Lindsey Graham on agriculture and food policy
• Mike Huckabee on agriculture and food policy
• Bobby Jindal on agriculture and food policy
• John Kasich on agriculture and food policy
• George Pataki on agriculture and food policy
• Rand Paul on agriculture and food policy
• Rick Perry on agriculture and food policy
• Marco Rubio on agriculture and food policy
• Rick Santorum on agriculture and food policy
• Scott Walker on agriculture and food policy

Recent news

This section links to a Google news search for the term 2016 + presidential + candidates + agriculture + food

2016 Presidential Candidates on Agriculture and Food Policy News Feed

See also

• Presidential candidates, 2016
• Electoral College

External links

• ProCon.org's "Should Genetically Modified (GMO) Foods Have Mandatory Labeling?"