Washington, D.C. 鈥 Today, Farm Action submitted聽urging the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to revise its proposed rule by eliminating the predatory poultry tournament system. This comment was submitted in response to the department鈥檚聽聽proposal, the third proposed rule to strengthen the Packers and Stockyards Act (P&S Act).
The comment notes, 鈥淲e remain convinced, based on the law and the lived experiences of countless growers, that the Tournament System is inherently unfair and per se violates the Packers and Stockyards Act.鈥
While the USDA鈥檚 proposal is a 鈥渃rucial and overdue step forward,鈥 and Farm Action supports its adoption, the comment notes the USDA should include revisions aimed at dismantling the tournament system, which has enabled integrators to abuse farmers for decades.
Farm Action urges USDA to strengthen its proposed rule by:
- Requiring integrators to provide poultry producers with a fair base price
- Banning the tournament system outright or, at a minimum, protecting growers from unfair discrimination by capping the comparison-based pay so that it cannot equal or exceed 25% of the grower’s total pay
- Requiring integrators to offer growers contract terms that are of sufficient length to ensure a return on investment for any capital improvements requested or required by the integrator
- Increasing USDA鈥檚 oversight of the financial disclosures that this proposed rule requires integrators to share with growers when requesting capital improvements
To illustrate the need for this reform, Farm Action recently hosted a聽聽who recounted the abuse and loss of livelihood they experienced within the tournament system. This event garnered the interest of growers, advocates, Congressional staff, and media.
Following this event, Farm Action rallied nearly 600 supporters to also submit public comments calling on the USDA to strengthen this proposed rule to better protect America鈥檚 poultry farmers, making up the majority of聽.
Farm Action鈥檚 comments today echo those made in June of 2022 when USDA issued an advanced notice of a proposed rulemaking (ANPR) to collect information from stakeholders.聽聽condemned the tournament system鈥檚 inherent unfairness and stated that it violates the ban on unfair practices within the P&S Act.
