Congress needs to modernize the crop insurance program and update farm subsidies to reflect higher input costs and volatile commodity markets — expensive steps — when it writes the new farm bill, said the leader of the largest U.S. farm group at a listening session in Texas on Wednesday. An anti-hunger leader asked lawmakers to “keep the importance of access to SNAP and the adequacy of those benefits top of mind throughout farm bill discussions.”
 
The House Agriculture Committee chair, Glenn Thompson of Pennsylvania, said comments at the session would help lawmakers working on the new farm bill. He also said written comments could be submitted on the committee’s website. “We’re looking for your thoughts, your ideas, challenges you’re facing — and quite frankly, do me a favor [and] put some homegrown solutions in that as well.”
 
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