The Power of Corporate Agriculture, Part III
How to Uproot Corporate Power
In Part I and Part II of this blog series on corporate agriculture, I overviewed the ways in which Big Ag unfairly influences government policy to manipulate outcomes and maximize its profits.
Its influence needs to be reined in through sound and effective governance. That’s why public policy is so critical — it’s about using our voices in our own defense to prevent private interests from destroying the future in their single-minded quest for short-term returns.
Of course, that’s no small task: The current system is heavily entrenched and can often feel overwhelming. But there are mechanisms we can use to chip away at corporate power and transform food policy, step by step.
And there are many people working on food justice issues, from grassroots organizers to national advocacy organizations; from local food policy councils to federal elected policymakers who sponsor bills to protect the public from private interests. This blog post will explore how we can fight back and win.
The Center for Biological Diversity recently partnered with World Animal Protection and several other organizations to publish a just transition white paper and roadmap to guide the transformation of our global food system from the current intensive, industrial, animal-heavy model to an equitable, humane, and sustainable one. The paper was developed with contributors from more than 50 organizations and feedback from more than 120 stakeholders across 35 countries. It identifies strengthening food system governance as one of the three key levers for change — in other words, public policy.
We need to shift the policy landscape to promote the transition to a more just and equitable system that benefits people, and the planet, over big business. This means focusing on issues of food security and sovereignty, personal and public health, environmentalism, economic justice, worker and consumer rights, and democracy.
It requires facilitating a reduced reliance on industrial animal products and increased production and consumption of diverse, sustainable, plant-rich diets.
There are several primary methods of achieving this goal through U.S. federal policy (I’ll dive into equally important local and state policy in the future). While the following reforms require the federal government to enact sound policies, it’s our role as constituents to convince policymakers to act. Avenues for civic engagement include opportunities to have a voice both at agencies and legislatively, which I’ll get to shortly.
Federal Policy Recommendations to Protect Our Food System From Big Ag
Redirect financial incentives: The federal government must shift financial incentives, such as subsidies, grants, insurance, and loans, away from industrial animal agriculture and toward food sectors with greater sustainability and nutritional value, such as fruits and vegetables and plant-based proteins and supporting independent, marginalized farmers. It should also stop bailing out big meat companies when they make reckless financial decisions and stop contributing to Big Animal Ag’s marketing campaigns through the checkoff program, two practices I mentioned in Part II.
Enforce corporate accountability: The government must invest in and reinforce production-side regulatory activities and oversight to prevent harmful on-farm activities. This requires punishments with real teeth for infringements, such as fines, permit revocation, suspension of market access, and other sanctions. It should maximize industry transparency by mandating information disclosures, reporting on human rights and environmental impacts, and operating with due diligence principles. Finally, the government must take stricter anti-trust actions to prevent market consolidation in the agribusiness industry.
Promote sound environmental solutions in agriculture: The government should strengthen and enforce existing environmental laws and regulations to hold companies legally liable and financially responsible for pollution, resource depletion, and public health hazards. The U.S. Department of Agriculture can also promote more sustainable production practices by changing requirements for farmers participating in its conservation programs and ending investments in false agricultural climate solutions that don’t actually reduce our environmental footprint, such as carbon offsets and manure methane digesters.
Prevent corporate influence over government: It’s extremely important to pass and enforce stronger legislation to reduce the amount of influence that corporations have over policymakers. This includes addressing conflicts of interest, placing restrictions on lobbying activities and political donations, and preventing policymakers from engaging in certain business dealings. Only government can end the “revolving door” between agency leadership and corporate lobby groups.
Protect workers and consumers: The government should enact and strengthen laws protecting workers’ rights and consumer access to information. This includes laws that set better safety standards, guarantee livable incomes, provide legal protections, and promote worker-driven models for laborers on farms and in meatpacking and slaughterhouse facilities. As for consumers, companies must be required to disclose more information about the origins of their products through clear and honest food labeling and more transparent reporting.
Promote healthier consumption: The federal government has substantial influence over what Americans eat, through nutrition guidance documents such as the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, food service contracts, nutrition and agriculture research, and food procurement. It funds billions of meals per year for Americans in financial need, schools, the armed forces, people incarcerated in prisons, government employees, and patrons of federal facilities like cafeterias at national parks and veterans’ hospitals. It should seek to update its food service policies to procure and promote only foods that align with a just, equitable, and sustainable food system.
How You Can Influence Federal Policy From the Bottom Up
These policies may seem distant and high-level, but my goal is to convince you that every person can make an impact. Elected policymakers (and even unelected ones) are primed to listen to their constituents — in fact, they really do want to hear from you. The tough part is mobilizing enough constituents and making enough noise about an issue to force their hand. The first step you can take is making sure you’re registered to vote and participating in our elections.
As a constituent, you can let your representatives know at any time which policies you want them to pass. Calls and emails to representatives absolutely make a difference. You don’t have to be an expert on the issue; it’s your right as a citizen to express what you want changed and what you want your elected officials to do for you.
Many advocacy organizations spend countless hours packaging issues into concrete legislation that can be put up for a vote, and which you can urge your legislators to support.
I’ll overview specific bills in future posts, but in the meantime, you can always ask your representatives to support investments in sustainable foods instead of factory farms, corporate accountability for agribusinesses, dismantling consolidation in the animal agriculture industry, and other issues I’ve mentioned in this post. (Make sure to subscribe and check out the Center’s Food X newsletter to stay informed.)
Additionally, members of the public are invited to provide public comments on all new federal rulemakings through the Federal Register. You can look out for (and subscribe to alerts about) rules issued by the USDA on sustainable agriculture and nutrition, conservation programs, corporate consolidation, and any other topics you’re interested in. When a comment period opens, you can submit your feedback directly to the agency online.
There are also often opportunities to attend public meetings to make your voice heard. For example, the USDA, and Department of Health and Human Services are currently soliciting public feedback to create the 2025 iteration of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. You can submit a comment or attend a virtual meeting to urge them to use the Guidelines to promote healthy, sustainable consumption patterns that are not influenced by Big Ag.
We need to pressure politicians to fight for us using our collective vote. We vote not only at the ballot box but when we tell our representatives what issues matter to us — and with our wallets, when we stay aware of the hidden powers at play and make informed consumer choices.
Fighting back against corporate power may seem like a big hill to climb, but I’m happy to share guidance with anyone who seeks it, whether that’s providing tips on how to write comments or demystifying complicated food policy. Please feel free to reach out with any questions.
Rooted in Policy is a blog making the connections between policy, agrifood systems, and biodiversity more digestible for everyone. It’s written by Leah Kelly, food and agriculture policy specialist at the Center for Biological Diversity.
