Agriculture in the United States: A Position Update Study

All information provided here can be found on the League of Women Voters of the United States (LWV) webpages at: http://www.lwv.org/member-resources/agriculture-update
It is the work of the Agriculture Study Committee of the LWV and is underwritten by the LWV Education Fund.

The LWVUS Agriculture Update and Committee

About the committee and its mission

Through this work the League of Women Voters of the United States will update the national league's issue position on U. S. agriculture. This is accomplished through unbiased study, discussion, and consensus taking by the members of the League of Women Voters. Read "The LWVUS Agriculture Update and Committee" for the full scope of and timeline for the Agriculture Update. The article also offers information about the LWVUS Agriculture Update Committee conducting this work for the LWV Education Fund.

Consensus Questions

View the questions

These are the questions LWV members will discuss and answer at a local League consensus meeting. League members, please see your local LWV newsletter or contact your LWV board to find out when the Agriculture Update consensus discussion will take place in your area. (If you are not a member of the League of Women Voters and wish to participate in this discussion of U.S. agriculture, please join us!) All member consensus meetings will take place by or before April 1, 2014.

Study Background Materials

See all "facts and Issues" study resources.
(for study before answering consensus questions)

The Agriculture Study Committee of the LWVUS offers suggested background reading and multimedia resources on this issue. It is highly recommended that, in particular, members review these materials before attending a local League consensus meeting in order to be prepared for discussion and answering the consensus questions:

• View "Agricultural Update: Multimedia Resources for Background Information" "A sampling of multimedia resources that cover the breadth of topics within the agriculture update. These are not meant to endorse any particular practice or viewpoint."
• Read "Agriculture Update: Suggested Readings" "The Committee has identified three specific background documents that provide a broad and relatively neutral overview of the complex set of issues addressed by U.S. agricultural policy and three websites that provide similar types of information, but from the website sponsor’s point of view."

Also, the Agriculture Study Committee offers these papers that extensively examine agricultural issues in depth. These are excellent resources for those who wish to delve more deeply into certain aspects of U.S. agriculture regulation and practices:

• Key agencies supporting and regulating food and agriculture
• Modern technology issues in agriculture e.g., GMOs, herbicides, pesticides,agriculture water pollution, aquifer depletion, antibiotics in livestock, accurate food labeling
• Financial support for agriculture e.g., consolidation in agriculture industries, crop subsidies, federal agricultural regulatory process
• Acronyms - "Terms to better understand the current Agriculture Update as produced by the Agriculture Update Committee."
• Glossary - "A list of terms in the Agriculture Update provided by the Agriculture Update Committee."

This background work is underwritten by the League of Women Voters of the United States Education Fund. The committee papers are unbiased and all recommended external resources were chosen to present, as a group, a balanced array of viewpoints.

Leaders' Guide for the Agriculture Update Consensus

See the Leaders' Guide
(information for local League discussion leaders)

The guide is described on the LWVUS website as...

A document meant to assist League's in completing the Agriculture Update and Consensus process. This guide contains: Introduction to the Study Process, What a Consensus is, Local Board Roles, A Guide for Study Committees & Discussion Leaders, Getting to Consensus, Other Related LWVUS Positions, Tips for Consensus Meetings, After the Meeting and a Discussion Guide to Consensus Questions. PDF copies of this guide and the consensus questions are available for download.