"Trump Executive Order Promises to Slash Farm Regulations"

"Will a new executive order 'promoting agriculture and rural prosperity' fulfill its promise? That depends on who you ask."

"'Our farmers deserve a government that serves their interest and empowers them to do the hard work that they love to do so much,' said President Trump when signing an executive order titled, 'Promoting Agriculture and Prosperity in Rural America' on April 25th. Speaking to a group of 14 agribusiness representatives assembled for the event, he added 'I’m directing [Agriculture] Secretary Perdue to work with other members of my Cabinet to identify and eliminate unnecessary regulations that hurt our nation’s farmers and rural communities.'

Translation? If the Trump administration has its way, deregulation in the farm industry lies ahead.

Perdue’s remarks from the same day underscored the order’s intent. 'It used to be,' he said, 'that people in agriculture feared disease and drought as the greatest threats to their livelihoods … While those hazards remain, too often now it is the government—through interference and regulation—that poses the most existential threat to American farming. We aim to put a stop to that.'"

Elizabeth Grossman reports for Civil Eats May 8, 2017.