The Wisconsin Soybean Association (WSA) went above and beyond Capitol Hill while participating in the American Soybean Association’s (ASA) annual summer Hill Visits July 15-17 in Washington, D.C. The large team of farmer leaders from Wisconsin made the most out of their time in the nation’s capital by not only going door-to-door, visiting with Wisconsin lawmakers about important policy issues such as the farm bill, protecting access to crop inputs and promoting markets for U.S. soy both foreign and domestic, but flew in early for visits with industry folks, such as the National Oilseed Processors Association (NOPA), Waterways Council, Association of Equipment Manufacturers and even the Canadian Embassy. 

“I think it was a great plan to get out here early and visit with the groups that we need to partner with and get a better understanding of what they’re all about and how we can work together on certain issues,” said Dave Coggins, WSA treasurer. “They were all interesting conversations, and we learned a lot from each other.” 

The meeting with the Canadian Embassy was a first for the group of directors from WSA, where they sat down with their agricultural representatives to discuss the importance of maintaining a strong trade partnership with their neighbors to the north. Canada has long been the top export destination for Wisconsin’s agricultural commodities, accounting for more than $1.3 billion in sales last year. Canada is also a top three market for U.S. soymeal, valued at $666 million in the 2023/2024 marketing year, according to SoyStats. 

“Not only do we send a lot of products to Canada, but we also get a lot from them as well, like potash, so we had a really good sit-down conversation with them about how we can maintain that strong relationship with them, especially considering how close we are to them geographically,” said WSA President Doug Rebout.  

The Wisconsin farmer-leaders also met with representatives of NOPA to discuss policies that can help move the soybean crush industry forward. While CHS’s proposed $700 million soybean crush facility in Evansville is still paused, Coggins says there is optimism following the extension of 45Z tax credit and the EPA’s proposed increase to Renewable Volume Obligations for biodiesel, policies the WSA delegation advocated for at the Capitol.  

“CHS actually joined us virtually during our meeting with NOPA and they are encouraged by the things that took place recently in regard to biofuels regulatory items, but they still want to make sure that the proposed RVO increase doesn’t get backed off,” Coggins said. “They’re happy with what’s been proposed but it’s not final until the end of October, so they need that to make sure the facility is economically viable.”  

Also of significance to NOPA and Wisconsin farmers was the recent release of the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) commission report, which ASA argues used unsound science and cited false studies to make inaccurate claims about the healthiness of seed oils and safety of pesticide use. During their Hill Visits, WSA had a constructive conversation about the MAHA report with Rep. Derrick Van Orden, who serves on the House Ag Committee and represents Wisconsin’s Third District.  

“We had some opposing viewpoints in regard to some of the things in the MAHA reports, but I think we were able get our point across that we need sound science to prevail,” said Coggins. “For the most part we were able to encourage him, and he seemed to indicate he wouldn’t support legislation from the MAHA movement until he saw facts as well.” 

Coggins also noted some opportunity in their meetings with the newly elected Congressman Tony Wied, who represents the Eighth District and serves on the Ag Committee alongside Rep. Van Orden. 

“He understands commodities and trade, so we’re hopeful he can take positions that are favorable to soybeans and agriculture,” Coggins said. “We have some reason for cautious optimism following our visit with his office.” 

Along with Rep. Van Orden, other meetings on the Hills included visits with Sens. Ron Johnson and Tammy Baldwin.  

A Farm Bill by any name

Overall, the Wisconsin team noted that the visits with legislators in D.C. were much more positive this time around as compared to their last visit in March thanks to the recent passage of the budget reconciliation bill. The One Big Beautiful Bill included several of ASA’s farm bill priorities such as updating the soybean reference price at $10/bushel, improved Agriculture Risk Coverage (ARC) and Price Loss Coverage (PLC) programs, increased funding for agricultural research and more. However, much more work remains as WSA and ASA push for the passage of a 2025 Farm Bill to meet the rest of their needs. 

“Some are calling it Farm Bill 2.0 and others are calling it the ‘skinny’ farm bill, but I don’t care what you call it as long it gets passed,” said Rebout with a chuckle.  

ASA priorities still on the table for the new farm bill include international food aid initiatives, orphan programs that support research and development and expanding markets, preservation and improvement of USDA programs and conservation programs such as CRP and EQIP.  

“For us farmers who are out here trying to do what’s best for our land, it’s nice to have those conservation programs to help incentivize us,” Rebout said. “As farmers, we’re trying to do the best thing possible, but in today’s economic climate we can only do so much without help from these programs.” 

Even though there were several key priorities included in the budget reconciliation bill, Coggins stressed the importance of these Hill Visits and keeping that momentum going toward a five-year farm bill.  

“There seems to be a relaxed attitude because farmers got some favorable things, but what we don’t have is any certainty,” said Coggins, who has more than 40 years in ag banking. “A five-year farm bill would allow us to make appropriate business decisions and investments.” 

Joining Coggins and Rebout for ASA’s summer Hill Visits were WSA Vice President Matt Rehberg and Executive Director Adam Kask and ASA Directors Tanner Johnson (who also sits on ASA’s Executive Committee) and Don Lutz.