Food and Agriculture

Following Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-Maine)’s questioning of United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Sonny Perdue about how his agency would provide states with flexibility to alter how school meals are provided amid the coronavirus outbreak, the USDA has approved the Maine Department of Education’s (DOE) emergency school meals program waiver. “For the one in five… Read more »

In a House Agriculture Committee hearing, Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) questioned United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Sonny Perdue about the USDA’s new Agriculture Innovation Agenda, which sets the goal of increasing U.S. agricultural production by 40 percent while cutting the environmental footprint of U.S. agriculture in half by 2050. Pingree—who… Read more »

Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) today introduced the Agriculture Resilience Act (ARA), comprehensive legislation that sets a bold vision of reaching net-zero greenhouse gas emissions in U.S. agriculture by the year 2040. “Farming has always been a risky business, but unpredictable, extreme weather patterns are creating immense challenges that threaten our nation’s food production… Read more »

Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) today applauded the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) announcement of a forward-thinking plan to cut U.S. agriculture’s environmental footprint in half by 2050. Pingree said of USDA’s new Agriculture Innovation Agenda: “It’s encouraging that the USDA has set goals to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the agricultural sector. Extreme weather… Read more »

Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) today announced a grant award of $260,449 to the University of Maine Cooperative Extension. The grant comes from the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) National Animal Disease Preparedness and Response Program (NADPRP), funded through the 2018 Farm Bill. The grant… Read more »

Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) along with Congressman Dan Newhouse (R-Wash.) and Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici (D-Ore.) today introduced H.R. 5607, the bipartisan School Food Recovery Act. The bill will create a new program at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to support schools working on food waste reduction projects. “One in five kids in Maine doesn’t have… Read more »

Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) today voted for the passage of the FY2020 appropriations bills, including agricultural funding which she pushed for with her seat on the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture. The FY2020 agreement included funding for programs Pingree helped to create in the 2018 Farm Bill. “Farmers feed America, and they deserve support from… Read more »

Representatives Thomas Massie (R-KY) and Chellie Pingree (D-ME) introduced the Interstate Milk Freedom Act (H.R. 5410) today. This bill prohibits federal interference with the interstate traffic of unpasteurized milk and milk products that are packaged for direct human consumption. It’s legal to drink raw milk in 50 states. It is legal to sell raw milk in 28 states. Congress has never… Read more »

Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) today voted to pass H.R. 5038, the Farm Workforce Modernization Act, of which she is a cosponsor. The bipartisan bill is  immigration reform legislation designed to support farm businesses who rely on H-2A visas to fill positions in a tight labor market and allow long-time agricultural workers in the U.S. to… Read more »

Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) issued the following statement in light of USDA’s announcement that the Trump administration will tighten work requirements for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which is estimated to cut benefits for nearly 700,000 recipients: “The Trump administration gave trillion dollar tax cuts to corporations and billionaires, yet they don’t… Read more »