Washington, D.C. – The Alliance for Fair Sugar Policy (AFSP) today released the following statement expressing disappointment that the House failed to modernize the 80-year-old U.S. sugar program:
“It is disappointing that some members of Congress fell for the misinformation, scare tactics and highly charged, exaggerated rhetoric floated by the handful of sugar mega-processors that benefit from the complicated and messy sugar program.
“Unfortunately, the vote count on the Foxx amendment reflects politics as usual in Washington – from backroom deals to bitter partisanship on major pieces of legislation. This vote does not reflect the thousands of small businesses, newspaper editorial boards and taxpayer watchdog, consumer protection and environmental groups that have called on Congress to modernize the sugar program.
“The vote also does not reflect the groundswell of support among Republicans and Democrats who believe in the need to reform the program for the benefit of the American people and U.S. businesses.
“We thank Representative Foxx for her leadership on this issue, as well as the many champions of modernization who spoke up on the floor today, including Representatives Kind, Goodlatte, Blumenauer, Speier, Sanford and Perry.
“We are committed to continuing this fight. Members of Congress on both sides of the aisle and a broad-based group of small, family-owned businesses and manufacturers, retailers, food and beverage companies, trade associations, environmental advocates, taxpayer watchdog organizations, responsible government advocates, think tanks and other organizations still believe American small businesses deserve a fair sugar policy that works for everyone in the supply chain – from farm to the retail shelf.
“We believe that the Senate will say yes to fairness, yes to competitiveness and yes to protecting and creating American jobs by modernizing the sugar program.”
ADDITIONAL BACKGROUND
As the only commodity subsidy program that has not been modernized by Congress, the sugar program forces manufacturers to pay twice as much for sugar as the rest of the world, putting American businesses at a competitive disadvantage when it comes to creating jobs.
More than 600,000 Americans are employed throughout every state in the country by small, family-owned businesses and other food manufacturers that include sugar as an ingredient in the products they make. The impact is especially great on small, family-owned businesses that are the backbone of the U.S. economy. Click here to hear directly from small business owners and employees who are negatively impacted by the outdated and outrageous sugar program.
A number of provisions of the bill were included in the Foxx amendment and are likely to be included in a Senate amendment. The proposed provisions would help ensure an adequate supply of sugar at reasonable prices for American businesses – while preserving the sugar program and without risking an appropriate safety net for farmers.
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The Alliance for Fair Sugar Policy (AFSP) is a broad-based coalition advocating to modernize the outdated and outrageous U.S. sugar program. Formed by a sizeable group of small, family-owned businesses and manufacturers, retailers, food and beverage companies, trade associations, environmental advocates, taxpayer watchdog organizations, responsible government advocates, think tanks and other organizations, the group’s goal is to help level the playing field for American manufacturers and their families when it comes to being able to create jobs.
To learn more about the Alliance for Fair Sugar Policy and the need for sugar reform, please visitFairSugarPolicy.org.
Source: The Alliance for Fair Sugar Policy (AFSP)