Does not matter: Black farmers seek more than debt relief — Latinos face the highest wildfire threats

Jul 06, 2021

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Quick fix

— Black farmers have been woefully behind white farmers when it comes to getting direct loans and grants in recent years, a POLITICO analysis of data shows. Advocates for Black farmers say the Agriculture Department needs to be ready to do more to increase equitable access to farm loans and programs.

— Data shows Latinos living in the West face the highest rates of danger for wildfires largely because low-income segments of the population are finding affordable housing in high risk areas.

— Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack will travel to New Mexico this week to discuss food, nutrition and infrastructure.

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DRIVING THE WEEK

MODERN-DAY DISPARITY BETWEEN BLACK AND WHITE FARMERS: Data collected by POLITICO shows that not only have Black farmers received the least amount of direct loans of any ethnic and racial group over the past three years, but also that the number and share of direct loans hit a 10-year low last year.

Why it matters: USDA direct loans are supposed to be a sort of last resort for farmers who cannot get credit elsewhere. Yet, white farmers have an acceptance rate that is nearly twice as high, reports yours truly.

The issue is not just seen in loans. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack has mentioned all farmers of color only received less than 1 percent of Coronavirus Food Assistance Program dollars, though they represent about 5 percent of all farmers.

The department continues to fight legal battles in multiple courts to ensure that a congressionally authorized program to provide about $4 billion in debt relief to farmers of color is carried out.

Applications for direct loans from Black farmers were accepted only 37 percent of the time in 2020; applications from white farmers were accepted 71 percent of the time.

What they want: But advocates for Black farmers say USDA needs to take steps beyond debt relief to address barriers at the Farm Service Agency level including racial bias, inexperienced personnel and lack of bandwidth to help with applications. Farmers recalled FSA agents misleading them about available loan applications and being overall absent to help guide the process.

"You might waste all your time trying to get an approval letter and still not get a loan," Travis Cleaver, a Black farmer in Hodgenville, Ky., said in an interview. "The package is so thick and so intimidating, it's not something you are accustomed to doing."

What's next: USDA is conducting internal and external investigations, which are supposed to review all programs and agencies of the department to pinpoint where access may be lacking not just for Black farmers, but all producers including beginning farmers and other socially disadvantaged producers and ranchers.

USDA has previously said it plans to start reviews with the consumer-facing branches, which includes FSA. The external review is not expected to start until the fall, but the internal one is underway and is expected to wrap up over the summer.

MEANWHILE, IN TEXAS: USDA continues to fight its uphill battle for debt relief in Texas where the state's agricultural commissioner, Sid Miller, sued the department and won another preliminary injunction to freeze the payment process last week, as MA reported on Friday.

Over the weekend, the Justice Department filed a notice indicating that although the injunction stops any payments, previous injunctions filed in Wisconsin and Florida allow USDA to continue preparing the payments including by sending letters to eligible farmers if the injunctions are lifted.

The federal district judge in the Texas case, Reed O'Connor, ordered the plaintiffs to respond to the Justice Department's notice. Should they do so and should O'Connor agree, USDA could be barred from carrying through on the debt relief until the court disputes are resolved.

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LATINO RESIDENTS FACE MOST WILDFIRE THREATS: An analysis of census, insurance and wildfire data show Latino residents in the West face the greatest threat from wildfires due in part to lower-income Latinos being pushed to live in more remote areas that are susceptible to wildfires, reports Pro Energy's Zack Colman.

What's in the numbers? Data from climate services firm risQ found Latino populations grew by 223 percent in the highest wildfire risk areas between 2010 and 2019, compared to areas with no wildfire risk. The white populations in those same highest-threat areas fell by 32 percent.

An affordability crisis clashes with climate: Demographers said many Latino residents who moved to rural agricultural areas for farm work or to wealthy ski or outdoor recreation towns for service jobs settle in the hinterlands where land is cheaper — and services like firefighting are less accessible.

Wildfires last year hit Latino communities dotting Oregon and Washington agricultural towns that are baking under record temperatures and drought this year. The flames are swallowing homes and mobile home parks, devastating farmworkers whose average annual wages are less than $20,000 .

Related: Latinos have the highest concern about climate change: Another study done by the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication found Latinos have a higher concern about climate than non-Hispanic whites and African Americans, report Pro Sustainability's Shayna Greene and Nancy Vu.

Key voting issue: In a 2019 study, participants were asked how important 29 policy issues would be in determining their vote in the 2020 presidential election. Among Latino registered voters, 57 percent said global warming would be "very important" to their vote. Those polled ranked the issue as the sixth most important, above immigration and behind environmental protection.

Yale researchers also found that predominantly Spanish-speaking Latinos were more alarmed and concerned by climate change than English-speaking Latinos.

VIEWS FROM THE FOURTH: Farmworkers were among the group of essential workers honored at the White House's Fourth of July celebration. A UFW Foundation-member farmworker family from Georgia and a United Farm Workers unionized farmworker leader from Washington state and his family represented the two organizations and the nation's 2.4 million essential farmworkers, according to a statement.

Just two days earlier, Biden hosted a naturalization ceremony at the White House for 21 immigrants. He used the opportunity to advocate for legislation to create a pathway to citizenship for farmworkers and others. Lawmakers, industry groups and worker advocates want to pass a Senate version of the Farm Work Force Modernization Act before the August recess but time is running out.

VILSACK HEADS TO NEW MEXICO: Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack is expected to travel to New Mexico today and tomorrow to discuss food access and President Joe Biden's infrastructure plans.

Vilsack will kick off his trip with Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández (D-N.M.) for a tour of a food distribution center in Rio Rancho.

On Wednesday, Vilsack and Fernández will travel to the Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo for a tour of a water treatment facility. Vilsack is expected to make an announcement about water infrastructure investments across the country, according to a press release.

WEEKEND SCOOP (OF ICE CREAM): Shortly before celebrating the Fourth of July in Washington, Biden visited Michigan where he and Senate Agriculture Chair Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) went for an ice cream trip and talked agriculture.

Stabenow told reporters the pair discussed infrastructure and the importance of cherry growers and other growers to the state. (Biden also swung by a cherry orchard on Saturday.)

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Row Crops

— Over 60 food industry groups in the European Union signed a new code of conduct that will be used to increase sustainability goals in the food sector, POLITICO Europe's Gabriela Galindo writes.

— Tyson Foods recalled 8.5 million pounds of frozen chicken after USDA traced three cases, including one death, of listeriosis to the cooked chicken products, The New York Times reports.

— Food prices are expected to decrease worldwide over the next 10 years as a result of increased productivity, but the world is not on track to meet its hunger and emission reduction goals unless there is targeted policy change. Reuters has more.

— Almonds are one of the most profitable crops in California, producing nearly 80 percent of the world's supply, but the current heat and drought are driving growers to cull their orchards and ration water, according to The Wall Street Journal .

— Farmers in New Mexico are raising concerns over tax proposals on the Hill that may impact how inheritances are handled, The Kiowa County Press reports.

THAT'S ALL FOR MA! Drop us a line: xbustillo@politico.com; rmccrimmon@politico.com; hbottemiller@politico.com; gmott@politico.com and pjoshi@politico.com.