By Ryan Weston
While Florida remains a global tourism destination and has benefited from foreign investment, its farming industry still serves as the backbone of its economy by providing thousands of jobs in every corner of the state.
In South Florida, a good portion of the farmers are growing sugarcane, which has been a staple of Florida’s farming success for generations. Florida’s sugarcane industry has an estimated $3.2 billion impact on the state’s economy and supports 12,500 jobs.
For all of the economic stability sugarcane farming has brought South Florida, sugarcane farmers have unfortunately been the scapegoat for some of Florida’s problems in the eyes of environmental activists, despite the industry’s economic and environmental successes. One of the most common – and untrue – criticisms is that Florida’s sugarcane farmers receive direct subsidy checks from the federal government. In fact, the U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates that domestic sugar policy will have no taxpayer cost through 2026.
Considering the lack of subsidies for domestic farmers, the price of American sugar remains a bargain when compared to what is being sold by our foreign competitors. The retail price of sugar is less in the U.S. than most developed countries – 29 percent less on average. Mexican sugar is actually the same price or higher than U.S. sugar.
Instead of denigrating hard-working Florida farmers, the so-called “defenders of the environment” should be praising them for the undeniable progress they are making in cleaning up the Everglades Agricultural Area. Unlike some farmers around America, EAA farmers are required to meet stringent federal requirements for reducing phosphorous and 100 percent of the innovative farming equipment they use is paid for with private dollars.
Using best management practices that were researched and developed in conjunction with scientists at the University of Florida and the Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, last year, EAA farmers achieved a historic 79 percent annual reduction. To date, 90 percent of the water in Everglades National Park is meeting or exceeding the federal standard of 10 parts per billion.
On top of the investment sugarcane growers put into their operations, they are also assessed an agricultural privilege tax at $25 per acre. Over time, this tax raised more than $200 million for restoration in addition to the more than $200 million more for performing our on-farm water clean-up efforts. Combined, this $400 million is more than any other private group or industry.
It’s easy to point the finger at “Big Sugar,” but the industry helps put food on the table for thousands of Florida families. Without it, South Florida would be missing out on thousands of good paying jobs and our nation would likely have to rely increasingly on sugar from foreign countries.
When you tune out the heated rhetoric from environmentalists and look at the facts, their arguments just don’t add up. Our farmers are doing more with less and achieving significant, measurable results.
Ryan Weston is executive vice president of the Florida Sugar Cane League and former staff director for the U.S. House of Representatives’ Conservation Subcommittee of the Agriculture Committee.
Source: www.tallahassee.com