Madison – Today, Senator Sarah Keyeski (D-Lodi) joined her Democratic colleagues in introducing the “Farmers and Agriculture Keep Wisconsin Growing” bill package. This package includes bills to invest in the promotion of products made or grown in Wisconsin, connect farmers to local markets, expand access to healthy foods while supporting local producers, and preserve our state’s fertile farmland. The Senator also introduced a bill to expand the reach of farm service resources.
Sen. Keyeski released the following statement in response:
“Many of our farmers are hurting right now as a result of reactive tariffs and cutting USAID by the federal government. Sadly, there has been an increase in farmers filing bankruptcy from just one year ago and we must act quickly to stop the bleeding. This is all on top of Wisconsinites feeling the burden of rising costs.
“Not only has the Trump Administration taken away markets for farmers to sell their products, they are also attempting to take away food benefits from SNAP recipients. Sadly, my Republican colleagues in the State Legislature are virtually ignoring the issues that are affecting real people here in Wisconsin. That’s why my Democratic colleagues and I are working to provide better support for our farmers and neighbors in need.
“I’m proud to introduce bills today that help our farmers’ bottom line, help our local economies grow, and help our communities be healthier and stronger. Farmers are the backbone of this state. Agriculture is both a key part of our state’s heritage and a tremendous economic driver – generating over $116 billion for our state’s economy. We must prioritize protecting farming as a way of life and our small, rural communities. Doing so will benefit all Wisconsinites.”
In the “Farmers and Agriculture Keep Wisconsin Growing” package, Sen. Keyeski is one of the lead authors of LRB-5641, LRB-5786, and LRB-5357.
LRB-5641: Buy Local, Buy Wisconsin Grants and Something Special from Wisconsin
Buy Local, Buy Wisconsin is a competitive grant program that assists agricultural and food industries with efficiently providing their products to local stores, schools, and institutions. Qualified recipients are currently entitled to a maximum $50,000 grant applied to a specific project, collaboration, or partnership. This bill would raise the total funding of the program by $300,000 in each year of the 2025-2027 fiscal biennium to increase the amount of grants available to local Wisconsin producers.
Something Special from Wisconsin is a grant program that aims to create and sustain credibility for goods produced in Wisconsin. The program’s support allows local producers to more efficiently market and distribute quality goods. Recipients receive a business profile on the Something Special from Wisconsin website, trademarks on their products, and access to exclusive promotional events. LRB-5640 would increase the annual funding for the program by $200,000 in each year of the 2025-2027 biennium budget.
LRB-5786: Healthy Food Incentive Program
This bill builds upon 2023 Act 201 which created the Healthy Food Incentive Program. This program provides funding for market-match style programs that promote food security for SNAP participants. These programs often function by providing SNAP participants who utilize benefits with an additional credit to be used for the purchase of fruits and vegetables at the market. This bill will expand upon these already beneficial programs by providing an additional $2 million to further extend the reach of the Healthy Food Incentive Program.
Some farmer’s markets do not have the capacity to effectively and sustainably offer any EBT services, especially in rural communities. While many farmers markets accept SNAP benefits, not all have the capacity to do so, and the administration of it can be burdensome. To address this, this bill provides an additional $735,000 investment in EBT processing equipment and administration, allowing families who rely on SNAP more consistency in being able to redeem their benefits at farmers markets.
LRB-5357: Farmland Preservation Program and Agricultural Enterprise Area Updates
This bill makes important updates to the Farmland Preservation Program. These updates include increasing the maximum acres allowed in an agricultural enterprise area, allowing DATCP to use already appropriated funds to administer grants to implement farmland preservation, and indexing the program to inflation. This bill will improve farmers and local governments’ ability to use the program to preserve farmland, protect soil and water, and reduce land use conflicts.
Sen. Keyeski is also a co-author of LRB-5628: Purchase of Agricultural Conservation Easement (PACE) Program Funding and LRB-5694: Wisconsin Agricultural Exports Program, which are part of this bill package.
Lastly, Sen. Keyeski is the lead Senate author of LRB-5788, also introduced today. This bill will create two additional farmer support agent positions as part of the Wisconsin Farm Center to expand the producer support network, increase DATCP’s capacity for providing support, and create stronger, more local relationships between producers and Farm Center staff.
The Wisconsin Farm Center, run by the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection (DATCP) provides valuable assistance to Wisconsin’s farmers across the state and has become a trusted resource for farmers. Farm Center services include financial consulting and transition planning, mediation and arbitration, veteran farmer assistance and outreach, herd-based diagnostics, and farmer wellness. The Farm Center currently has some staff in place to help farmers work through these issues, but demand for their assistance is quickly outpacing their capacity.
