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North Carolina Republican State Rep. Neal Jackson introduced House Bill 62 on Wednesday (Feb. 19), which aims to protect farmers from financial discrimination based on their use of environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices.
ESG probably isn’t the first thing you think of when you’re looking at the cost of food in today’s America. In recent weeks, we asked our partners and newsletter subscribers to start sending us comments on the key issues impacting their day-to-day lives. Cost-of-living and the price of food and fuel was by far the most notable issue. Did you know that ESG — essentially “pro-climate” policies — are one of the main reasons many people believe we have “rising prices and smother[ed] innovation,” according to the HB 62’s sponsors, the Carolina Journal noted.
“I am proud to sponsor HB 62 the Farmers Protection Act. This bill is a step in the right direction for North Carolina. Rather than using ESG ratings that have proven to be disastrous on the international stage, banks in our state should return to evaluating loans based on financial indicators. North Carolina’s agriculture industry is vital to our state’s success, and we cannot allow misguided policies to hold back our farmers,” Jackson told Million Voices.
What Does The Bill Include?
“It is unlawful for any bank to deny or cancel service to any agriculture producer based, in whole or in part, upon the agriculture producer’s greenhouse gas emissions, use of fossil-fuel derived fertilizer, or use of fossil fuel-powered machinery,” the bill states. “If a bank has made any ESG commitment related to agriculture, there is a rebuttable presumption that the bank’s denial or restriction of service to an agriculture producer violates this section. A bank may overcome this rebuttable presumption, by demonstrating through clear and convincing evidence, that its denial or restriction of a service was based solely on documented financial considerations rather than an ESG commitment.”
If passed, it will be interesting to see how this bill shapes up to Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s focus on ending chronic illness — also at the source: our food and the chemicals we use to grow and distribute it around the country. Then again, as many of the world’s major academic and scientific institutions have been “captured” by corporate interests, it could be that the science on the environment and our climate will also change rapidly throughout the Trump administration’s time in office.
“When applied to agriculture, ESG principles drive restrictive policies and financial practices that penalize farmers for operating in ways that have sustained the sector for generations,” Center for Food policy analyst Kelly Lester said of the legislation. “These include requirements to reduce emissions, adopt renewable energy, and avoid certain farming practices deemed environmentally harmful. The real-world application of these goals burdens farmers with excessive costs and compliance requirements, often with little respect for the unique challenges of agriculture.”
“Agriculture is one of the most crucial industries to the North Carolina economy,” Jackson said of the bill, per CJ. “Unfortunately, farmers in our state have encountered challenges obtaining financing by some of the larger lending institutions who have determined that farming does not align with their organization’s carbon or social goals. The Farmers Protection Act ensures that there is no discrimination against NC farmers based upon a radical ESG philosophy.”
Does Your State Support Its Agricultural Community?
Unlike money, a huge amount of our food actually does grow on trees — and roams in fields, flourishes in our soils, and soars above us in our skies — and America has all the land it needs to produce all the food we need. But each state and its unique environment requires local knowledge to get the best out of God’s green Earth.
“Europe provides a cautionary tale for ESG agricultural policies,” said John Locke Foundation’s Brooke Medina, according to CJ. “Aggressive climate policies in the Netherlands have driven many farmers to the brink of bankruptcy, with the possibly disastrous consequences of food shortages and economic collapse. This should serve as a warning for US policymakers, that ESG regulations could lead to the same dire outcomes.”
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