WASHINGTON, DC – Specialty Crops Caucus Co-Chairs Rep. David Rouzer (R-NC-07), Rep. Jim Costa (D-CA-21), Rep. Sanford Bishop (D-GA-02), and Rep. David Valadao (R-CA-22), joined by over one hundred Members of Congress, sent a bipartisan letter to the House and Senate Committees on Agriculture urging immediate and equitable relief for specialty crop producers.
The letter responds to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s recent announcement of the Farmer Bridge Assistance (FBA) Program, which allocates $11 billion to row crop producers and only $1 billion to specialty crops and other commodities, with little clarity on payment structure or timing.
“Specialty crop growers contribute over $75 billion annually to the U.S. economy, yet they continue to face rising input costs, limited access to labor, trade disruptions, and other unprecedented challenges. As USDA rolls out the Farmer Bridge Assistance Program, we urge the Agriculture
Committees to ensure that the $1 billion set aside for specialty crops is distributed quickly, fairly, and equitably, so growers can continue producing for our nation and remain globally competitive,”
said the bipartisan Specialty Crop Caucus Co-Chairs.
“After months of uncertainty, specialty crop growers urgently need clarity and meaningful relief, and we appreciate the Specialty Crop Caucus for elevating this issue and making clear that specialty crops must be included in any relief package for American agriculture,” the co-chairs of the Specialty Crop Farm Bill Alliance said. “Specialty crops are both an economic engine and the source of the most nutritious foods in the American diet, but current policies fail to reflect their importance to public health and food security. We strongly support the Caucus’s call for USDA to act swiftly, provide transparency, and build on proven relief models such as the Marketing Assistance for Specialty Crops Program (MASC) and CFAP-2 to ensure assistance reaches growers quickly and fairly. Specialty crop growers cannot afford further delay, and we urge congressional leadership and the Administration to move immediately to deliver proportional, transparent, and timely relief that reflects the economic significance and unique cost structures of specialty crop agriculture.”
Specialty crops—including fruits, vegetables, tree nuts, greenhouse, nursery, and floriculture products—represent one of the most economically significant and labor-intensive sectors of U.S. agriculture, generating more than $75 billion annually in cash receipts, and represents around one-third of the farm gate value. Yet specialty crop producers continue to face rising costs and market disruptions without receiving proportional relief.
Rising production costs have not been matched by increases in crop prices, placing significant strain on growers nationwide. While USDA has indicated that $1 billion will be reserved for specialty crops, details regarding eligibility, payment formulas, and timelines remain unclear.
The letter urges the House and Senate Committees on Agriculture to work with USDA to ensure these funds are distributed swiftly, equitably, and in a manner that reflects the unique needs of specialty crop operations. The Members emphasize USDA should build on these proven models as they proceed with implementation of the FBA Program to ensure specialty crop producers receive the support necessary to remain competitive, sustain rural economies, and continue supplying safe, affordable food to consumers nationwide.
The full text of the letter can be found here.
Rep. David Rouzer (R-NC-07) has served as co-chair of the Specialty Crops Caucus since 2024. He also has served on the House Committee on Agriculture since coming to Congress in 2015.
