Hold the thin green line, protect the farmers, American Sugar Alliance says

The American Sugar Alliance recently posted kudos to the Farm Policy Facts for its editorial about agriculture and America's security that said America needs strong policies to protect farmers.

The Farm Policy Facts editorial quoted retired Major General Darren Owens, who was one of the former military leaders that met with a congressional panel regarding farm policy, who said: “I firmly believe that America’s first line of defense is our ability to feed and clothe the people. Without American agriculture providing adequate supplies of food and fiber at a reasonable cost we would all be dependent on other nations and that could place the food security and ultimately the security of the nation at risk.”

The article's rallying cry to “hold the thin green line,” really struck a chord with sugar producers, given critics’ relentless efforts to gut America’s no-cost sugar policy in favor of imports, the American Sugar Alliance said.

The American Sugar Alliance pointed out that Hawaii will stop producing sugar this year and 65 U.S. sugar factories have closed since 1980.

"The green line in sugar may have gotten a bit thinner this year, but we are bound and determined to do our part to hold fast to what remains and fight for the strong farm policies that make homegrown food possible," the American Sugar Alliance said.

While critics deride U.S. sugar policy, the system ensures that supply and demand for sugar stays in balance. The policy, operated under the Farm Bills of 2008 and 2014, does not subsidize sugar farmers with checks. The U.S. Department of Agriculture can control the flow of sugar by slowing the amount of foreign imports, limit American sugar sold by farmers and divert surpluses to other uses, such as making ethanol.