Farmers are fighting back against national media reports that blame federal
farm subsidies for America's obesity epidemic.
More than 800 farmers and "friends of agriculture" have signed a petition
seeking some air time during an upcoming national summit on obesity in
Williamsburg, Va. ABC-TV and Time magazine are co-sponsoring the June 2-4
event, which is expected to draw national media coverage.
The dispute stems from an ABC special on obesity, which aired in December.
The one-hour program drew the ire of farmers for blaming Americans' bulging
waistlines on farm subsidies, without giving farm experts an opportunity to
rebut the claims.
Agriculture groups worry the upcoming summit also will focus blame on farm
policy.
"If the ABC coverage from before is any indication, we certainly don't
expect a fair shake," said Phillip Hayes, a media consultant representing
farmers.
The National Association of Wheat Growers in Washington, D.C., has launched
a protest campaign, and Plains states farmers want their Corn Belt brethren
to join the effort.
Their petition calls farmers "the backbone of a food and fiber industry that
employs 24 million Americans." The petition also says that blaming obesity
on farm policy is "a big fat lie."
Already, organizers have gathered signatures from Texas to the Dakotas and
from the Pacific Northwest to the South. Organizers hope to gather thousands
more signatures by June 2.
U.S. Sens. Sam Brownback, R-Kan., and Conrad Burns, R-Mont., both
representing major grain-growing states, have joined the chorus.
Burns, a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, contacted ABC
earlier this week to complain about how the network has portrayed
agriculture.
"To point the finger at farmers and the Farm Bill as the cause for obesity
is just ridiculous. Farmers don't deserve blame," he said.Des Moines Register:
