Statement of U.S. Senator Russ Feingold on the Department of Justice and Department of Agriculture Holding Workshops to Address Anti-Competitive Practices in the Agriculture Industry

Statement

Statement of U.S. Senator Russ Feingold on the Department of Justice and Department of Agriculture Holding Workshops to Address Anti-Competitive Practices in the Agriculture Industry

"I am pleased the Department of Justice and the Department of Agriculture are working together to examine anti-competitive practices in the agriculture industry and consider what antitrust and regulatory actions can be taken to curtail them. While I have been particularly concerned by what has been happening in the dairy industry, over the past eight years we also have seen dramatically increased concentration and lax enforcement in virtually every segment of agriculture. I hope these workshops can lead to meaningful action to address these serious problems facing Wisconsin farmers.

"I also want to highlight and commend the cooperation and collaboration between the Department of Justice and the Department of Agriculture. I hope other agencies, including the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and Federal Trade Commission, which also have important oversight roles in the agriculture industry, are brought into this collaboration."

During a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing in March, Feingold discussed the grave concerns of Wisconsin farmers about slumping dairy prices and the Bush administration's failure to take action against anti-competitive behavior in the agriculture industry. Feingold questioned now-Assistant Attorney General Christine Varney on the issue of anti-competitive practices during the hearing. More on Feingold's questioning is available here.

Feingold has also sought greater cooperation between the different federal agencies with oversight of agriculture, particularly dairy. Feingold successfully included an amendment in the Senate version of last year's farm bill to encourage USDA to collaborate with other agencies including DOJ, along the lines of the recently announced joint USDA and DOJ workshops.

More information on the workshops is available on the Department of Justice website: http://www.usdoj.gov/opa/pr/2009/August/09-ag-771.html.

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