Legislation would phase out large factory farms by 2040

New federal legislation aims to phase out large factory farms in an effort to help smaller family farms.

The bill, which is a reintroduction of legislation originally proposed in 2019, was introduced by U.S. Senator Cory Booker and Rep. Ro Khanna. It would put a moratorium on construction and expansion of large concentrated animal feeding operations and phase out the operation of large CAFOs by 2040.

It would also invest $100 billion over 10 years in voluntary buyout and transition funding for farmers who want to leave the CAFO model. It would hold corporate integrators responsible for pollution, strengthen the Packers and Stockyards Act to allow for fairer contracts with farmers, and restore mandatory country of origin labeling while prohibiting imported products from being labeled “Product of USA.”

“If Congress doesn’t act soon, we risk losing an entire generation of family farms to multinational farming corporations,” Khanna said. “The Farm System Reform Act is the clear way to ensure the American food system maintains fair competition, high animal welfare standards and a dependable food chain.”