GREEN BAY, WISCONSIN (September 17, 2026) — The Senate Ag Committee passed an important milestone yesterday in seeing the completion of a farm bill by advancing the Agricultural Act of 2026 out of committee on a 12/11 party-line vote. Bringing the bill out of committee now triggers a conference committee between the version passed by the Senate Ag Committee and the House version. The House passed their version in April.
The next step will be selection of conference committee members for both the House and Senate. Edge Dairy Farmer Cooperative is urging to take timely and bipartisan action to advance the Agricultural Act of 2026 and finalize the remaining portions of the long-awaited farm bill.
“The Senate Agriculture Committee's action is an important step toward delivering the certainty dairy farmers and rural communities need, but Congress still has work to do before a new farm bill becomes law,” says Edge Board President Heidi Fischer.
Of particular interest to Edge members are provisions to reauthorize the Dairy Indemnity Payment Program through 2031, remove the sunset date for the Dairy Forward Pricing Program, increase funding for the Dairy Business Innovation Initiatives, and codify mandatory reporting of dairy-product-processing costs.
Edge has engaged in bipartisan conversations with both House and Senate lawmakers to ensure these important provisions, especially the permanency of the Dairy Forward Pricing Program, are included.
“Dairy farmers have operated under an outdated farm bill for years while facing rising costs and market uncertainty. We encourage Congress to continue working toward a final bipartisan bill that strengthens farm safety-net programs and provides certainty for all farmers,” Fischer said.
A large fiscal portion of the farm bill was included in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act passed earlier this year. Final passage of the remaining farm bill programs as part of the Agricultural Act of 2026 will solidify important farm and food programs for five years.
For more information about Edge and its policy priorities, visit www.edgedairy.com.
About Edge:
Edge Dairy Farmer Cooperative provides dairy farmers throughout the Midwest with a powerful voice — the voice of milk — in Congress, with customers, and within their communities. Edge, based in Green Bay, Wisconsin, is one of the top cooperatives in the country based on milk volume. Member farms are located in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, Ohio, South Dakota, Texas, Florida, and Wisconsin. For more information, visit www.edgedairy.com.
