'This Has Killed The Program': Marcy Kaptur Bemoans Electrification of Farmers Market Coupon Program

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During a House Appropriations Committee hearing on Wednesday, Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-OH) spoke about the farmers market coupon program.

Transcript

00:01Thank you very much.

00:03I want to recognize the gentlelady from Ohio,

00:06who, Madam Secretary, if you're intrigued by the idea of Buy American for SNAP,

00:11we might have a willing partner.

00:13I love it. I love it.

00:15The gentlelady is recognized.

00:16Thank you so much.

00:17Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and welcome, Madam Secretary.

00:20We've not had a chance to meet, unfortunately, this morning.

00:25We've got three committees, all so important,

00:28and meeting simultaneously, and all of us are running around.

00:32This is not the way Congress should operate.

00:35I am willing to work late into the evening in order to allow,

00:38and I'm not blaming this committee,

00:39but the process that's been set up is very unfair to witnesses

00:43and very unfair to members, and I don't like it at all.

00:46So I will exit immediately after questions

00:49because I have to run to two other committees.

00:51It's not an intelligent way to operate the country.

00:54Well, I am always available.

00:56So if we don't get to it, feel free to call me personally anytime.

00:59My first question is an easy one.

01:01Does the Department of Agriculture still permit the Virginia and Maryland farmers

01:07to sell at the USDA farmers market to set a good example for the country

01:11to support local agriculture?

01:13I believe the answer is yes,

01:15but that's one question I have not had in all these days,

01:18so I will double-check and get back to your office today.

01:21That's an important one because that's setting...

01:22The answer is 100% yes, from the smart people sitting behind me.

01:25I want to help that, even though I'm in competition with the chairman of this committee

01:29because he grows in his district too,

01:32but the millions of people that go down that mall,

01:35that is our advertisement for local agriculture.

01:38I love it.

01:38And there's a truck they used to take around.

01:41I don't know if they still do that,

01:42but they had it hidden behind some bushes the last time I was over there,

01:46and I really think we need to showcase agriculture,

01:49and you are in a perfect place to do it,

01:51to the millions of people that visit this city,

01:53and I don't live here.

01:54Amen.

01:55But anyway, but that gets me to my point.

01:58I have fought for many years for the Senior Farmers Market

02:03and WIC Farmers Market program.

02:05We used to call it the Coupon Program

02:07because senior citizens know what coupons are.

02:10The younger generation is all, you know, electronic,

02:13but seniors know what coupons are.

02:14It was a measly amount of money, 50 bucks for those that qualified,

02:18and our Area Office on Aging conducted this program.

02:21We used to have 22,000 seniors,

02:24and this program is only a $20 million program.

02:26It's an embarrassment, but it's in the books.

02:29Okay, so we had 22,000 seniors who got $50 a summer,

02:33and I could tell you so many compelling stories

02:36of what those $50 meant,

02:37and they had to buy it from local producers

02:39and what it means to those producers.

02:41I am so worried we will not have a follow-on generation of farmers in this country,

02:46and there's a reason for it because of conglomerate agriculture

02:49that has squeezed out these local producers, local innovation,

02:53and it's wrong.

02:54It's wrong.

02:55These people work so hard,

02:56and they have so many ideas that are fresh into the organic producers

03:00that are coming along and so forth.

03:01So this program, just in my little area,

03:04I have eight counties, seven of them are rural, okay?

03:07150 farmers registered.

03:09We actually had a registry of local farmers.

03:12When these seniors would get these coupons,

03:14they could go to those 150 places.

03:16It was great.

03:17We had up to 150 farmers.

03:19You show me any other district in the country that's done that.

03:22And we had 22,000 seniors,

03:24and I don't know how many WIC recipients we had,

03:26but it was a lot.

03:27They'd go to the downtown farmer's market.

03:29Anyway, what USDA did,

03:32and I don't know why and I don't know who,

03:34but they decided to make it an electronic program.

03:38Do you know how many seniors can't use those devices?

03:42Yes.

03:43When they're sitting alone in their home,

03:47and for the farmers,

03:49I went out to one of our biggest produce stands,

03:52and I said, Mr. Bergman, where's the...

03:54He goes, I don't do that anymore, Farmer Bergman.

03:57Why?

03:57I don't want to get into that electronic stuff.

03:59I don't have time for it.

04:00Ma'am, this has killed the program.

04:0322,000 people, that doesn't count the WIC recipient,

04:06just 22,000 seniors in my area, 135 farmers.

04:09This year, we've only had 32 farmers register for the program.

04:12So, I am hell-bent on this,

04:15because if we don't do this,

04:16we're not going to have farmers,

04:17and they can farm in the city now.

04:19We've got examples of where we're doing that

04:21all the way from Manhattan

04:22all the way to Columbus, Ohio, and Cleveland, Chicago.

04:25Some of our new farmers are in the cities.

04:28I met a guy yesterday from Battle Creek, Michigan.

04:31Phenomenal.

04:31He was here with the Farmers Union.

04:33So, I'm just saying, I need help to help my people

04:36and to help whether they're the farmers

04:38or whether they're the consumers.

04:39Something is really wrong in Denmark.

04:41Yeah.

04:41And we need your help.

04:43This is the first I've heard of it,

04:44but we will look into it,

04:45and why don't you and I jump on the phone

04:46in the next day or two,

04:47and let's have a longer conversation.

04:49That's my only question.

04:50Thank you very much.

04:51Thank you so much, ma'am.

04:55The gentleman from Florida, Mr. Franklin.

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