A Proposal by the Securities and Exchange Commission, SEC, would require reporting of climate-related disclosures throughout the supply chain. Farm groups including the American Farm Bureau Federation have concerns regarding the proposal but need more time to review the rule. The SEC recently granted an extension to review the rule and determine its impacts on the farming community. Travis Cushman, AFBF Senior Legal Counsel for Public Policy, says it’s a rare move by the SEC to grant an extension.

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“Very rare. The SEC world is new to us. We're used to dealing with EPA and USDA. But in talking with dozens of folks that are a specialist in the SEC over the past few weeks, one thing they did tell us is that we would not be getting extension, so this is certainly a nice win for us.”
 

Cushman says AFBF is concerned about the long-term impact the rule would have on the farming community.

“It seems to redefine what public companies need to give to investors by including emissions about farms and ranches. Our concern is that the only way that the public companies will get this information is by requiring it from the farmers and ranchers themselves. This will be wildly burdensome and make it much more difficult for farmers and ranchers to do the job they need to do at a time when food prices are going up significantly and it's hard enough to manage your operations.”

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