The “Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2026” that is coming up for a House vote this spring is yet another GOP-led assault on the country’s food safety, warn public health organizations, environmental groups, and animal rights advocates, who are sounding the alarm over the five-year bill.
The House Committee on Agriculture passed the “Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2026” on March 5 by a 34-17 vote. All 27 Republicans on the committee backed the bill, and seven Democrats crossed the aisle to join them. The legislation will now head to Congress.
The 800-page document is being praised by Big Agriculture and industry groups across the nation, and Rep. Glenn “GT” Thompson (R-Pennsylvania), chairman of the committee, has described it as “ a collaboration between Republicans, Democrats, and stakeholders.”
But public health advocates warn that the bill is set to further erode well-being and health in the U.S., further deepening the hypocrisy of Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s repeated promise to “Make America Healthy Again.”
“Rather than address the economic crises facing America’s family farmers, this Farm Bill is a thinly veiled gift bag for Big Ag and pesticide manufacturers. It’s a massive slap in the face to people across the political spectrum demanding a healthier food system,” said Jason Davidson, a senior food and agriculture campaigner with Friends of the Earth U.S.
Pesticides
Some of the most contentious sections of the bill concern pesticides.
Section 10205 blocks consumers and farmers harmed by pesticides from suing companies over inadequate safety labeling. Section 10206 would overturn all state and local laws that protect food safety. Section 10207 would repeal federal statutes created to protect people and animals from pesticides.
Rep. Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) introduced an amendment that would have stripped these sections from the bill, but the effort was rejected by the committee.
“Once again, the Trump Administration and Republicans in Congress are siding with chemical companies and choosing corporate profits over Americans’ health — while paying lip service to the ‘Make America Healthy Again’ movement. This Farm Bill is a gift to Big Chemical, plain and simple. It delivers exactly what giants like Bayer have spent years lobbying for: blanket immunity from lawsuits and the power to gut the state warning label laws that protect families, farmers, and children,” said the congresswoman in a statement.
Beyond Pesticides executive director Jay Feldman said the committee’s GOP majority have “passed a measure that has garnered across-the-board disapproval, except from those representing the vested interests of chemical companies and agribusiness.”
The push to shield chemical companies from liability is not occurring in a vacuum.
Shortly before the bill passed in committee, Bayer announced a proposed class settlement for the thousands of people who claim they developed non-Hodgkin lymphoma from exposure to the weedkiller Roundup. Those impacted had formerly sued Monsanto, but Bayer inherited the lawsuits when it acquired the company in 2018.