Fourth-generation dairy farmer worried about the future of agriculture amid rising costs and labor shortages
'We cannot let regulations kill off our food supply,' Dairy farmer tells Tucker
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A fourth-generation dairy farmer told Fox News on Monday that climate change-related policies and heightened economic woes could signal bad news for her family's farm and the larger agricultural community.
"We’ve seen 45,000 dairy farms go out since 2003. I’m worried for my beef farmers, the processing plants… I’m worried about pretty much all of agriculture. What is our future looking like and how are Americans going to rally around our agriculture community? We must support our local agriculture. We cannot let regulations kill off our food supply," Stephanie Nash said on "Tucker Carlson Tonight."
FARMS FACE LONG TERM CHALLENGES AS PRODUCTION COSTS CONTINUE TO SKYROCKET
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Rising costs, labor and supply shortages and little federal support – in addition to climate change and conservation regulations – are all major obstacles threatening the Nash family, and others like them.
Chris Pollack, co-owner of Pollack-Vu dairy farm tells Fox News fuel costs have more that doubled (Megan Myers/Fox Digital) (Fox News)
"We are facing higher farm inputs, were facing opinions from the public, were facing regulations, were facing drought," Nash said. "[In] California, [Gov. Gavin] Newsom passed a law that we can't drill any water right now, and California has the largest agriculture county in the United States," she told Carlson.
HIGHER FERTILIZER PRICES COULD MEAN SMALLER CROPS
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Nash said the Biden administration has not only been little help to farmers and ranchers, but they've "made it very clear that the Green New Deal and climate change and billions of dollars going to Washington, D.C., is their agenda and they couldn't care less about the American people, our food supply and our food security."
The cost of fertilizer alone has risen more than 300% in some areas, according to the American Farm Bureau.
Rising costs, labor and supply shortages are all major obstacles threatening farms across the U.S. (Matt Leach/Fox Digital) (Fox News)
The rise in price is due to a number of factors, including increased demand, supply chain disruptions, increase in energy costs, according to the American Farm Bureau. Even the war in Ukraine plays a role.
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Nash said she hopes people will start to realize that "no farm," means "no fuel," and "no future."