ABSTRACT
This chapter concentrated on issues likely to be debated in the reauthorization of farm legislation upon the expiration of the Food Security Act of 1985, specifically the programs in the commodity and trade titles and the conservation and environmental provisions. U.S. agricultural policy should be to promote a healthy, dynamic, responsive sector that is part of the world economy as people approach the twenty-first century. Chemicals used in the production, storage, processing, and marketing of agricultural products have enabled a large supply of high-quality food. A common criticism of land retirement, however, is that it encourages overuse of chemical inputs on the land remaining in cultivation to make up for lost production. Economic theory suggests that rational producers will not overuse any inputs unless high prices provide an incentive for extra production. The focus in most farm bill debates tends to be much narrower than the wide range of factors that affect agriculture.
