BAKERSFIELD, CA – Today, Congressman David Valadao (CA-22) hosted U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Brooke Rollins at Allied Potato for a roundtable discussion on the challenges facing Central Valley farmers, ranchers, and producers. The event brought together agricultural leaders from across the region to discuss key industry priorities and celebrate USDA’s finalizing of the Assistance for Specialty Crops Farmers (ASCF) program. This will provide $1.625 billion in payments to eligible specialty crop producers to help offset rising input costs and market disruptions—$625 million more than previously announced.

Prior to the roundtable, Congressman Valadao and Secretary Rollins toured Allied Potato, where they visited the potato fields and observed the processing and packaging operations that help feed families across the nation.

“Agriculture drives the Central Valley’s economy, and I was honored to welcome USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins to Bakersfield for a discussion with local agricultural leaders today,” said Congressman Valadao. “For years, I’ve worked closely with producers across the Valley to address the challenges they face—rising input costs, workforce shortages, burdensome regulations, and the need for a stronger specialty crop safety net—and this conversation reinforced the importance of continued collaboration. As the sole dairy farmer in Congress, I understand these issues firsthand, which is why I was proud to join the Secretary as she announced USDA finalized $1.6 billion in assistance for specialty crop growers to help offset high costs and market disruptions. I appreciate her engagement with our local leaders, and I look forward to continuing to work with USDA on commonsense policies that support Central Valley agriculture and give producers the certainty they need to plan for the future.”

“Thank you Congressman Valadao, a leader on the House Commitee on Agriculture, for hosting an incredible roundtable today at Allied Potato here in your beautiful Bakersfield, California. Your extraordinary farmers, ranchers, and dairymen exemplify what it means to feed the country and the world,” said Secretary Rollins. “Everyday, the Trump Administration is putting Farmers First. As we announced after the roundtable, we are committed to ensuring the economic strength of our specialty crop operations as  we continue opening  new markets abroad and strengthening demand domestically for American produce. Congressman Valadao was critical to helping pass the Working Families Tax Cut Act, which is already helping over 63,000 California farms sell more agriculture products than any other state, protecting 2 million family farms from the death tax, increasing reference prices for the first time in more than a decade, and making the largest investment in rural America in history. And we are just getting started.”

“It was an honor to be asked by Congressman Valadao to host this important event with USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins. I appreciated the opportunity to welcome her to our farm, showcase Allied Potato’s operations, and share the important role California plays in potato production and exports. Many people are surprised to learn that California exports potatoes, and Allied Potato is proud to be the largest exporter in North America. The roundtable was extremely productive and provided a valuable forum to highlight the challenges and opportunities currently facing our agricultural producers. It was great to discuss these issues directly with Secretary Rollins, and I look forward to continuing the conversation about how producers and policymakers can work together to strengthen the Valley’s agricultural economy, expand our markets, and grow more products for consumers here and around the world,” said Jason Davenport, President and Owner, Allied Potato.

Attendees included representatives from the California Farm Bureau, Western Growers, Wonderful Citrus, California Dairies, Inc., Milk Producer’s Council, California Citrus Mutual, Grimmway Farms, Western Tree Nut Association, Blue Diamond Almonds, California Fresh Fruit Association, California Farmworker Foundation, Family Tree Farms, Monte Vista Farming Company, and Cauzza Growers.

Click here for photos from today's event.

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