How does the Farm Bill protect wildlife? In part two of our series Mary Pfaffko, Senior Policy Analyst for Private Lands, explains the Commodities Title and why it's critical to coexistence with wildlife.

Transcript: The Farm Bill governs much of our nation's food and agriculture policy and is divided into 12 sections or “titles”. From conservation and forestry, to nutrition and trade, to rural development and energy, these titles touch some aspect of our lives. Today, we're going to talk about Title One, the Commodities Title. This part of the Farm Bill provides federal support for major crops such as wheat, corn and soybeans.

The Commodities Title is also important to coexistence with wildlife because it provides assistance to help farmers and ranchers recover from the effects of natural disasters, including livestock predation. Within the livestock indemnity program, the Farm Bill provides compensation to farmers and ranchers who have experienced loss or injury to livestock due to predation from federally protected species like the gray wolf or Florida Panther.

To be eligible, the farmer or rancher provides acceptable evidence to the US Department of Agriculture of the cause of that loss or injury. This assistance helps humans coexist with wildlife. Defenders of Wildlife works in support of these efforts with the Department of Agriculture, which administers the livestock indemnity program and with the US Fish and Wildlife Service, which is bringing back these keystone species to the landscape in a way that supports livelihoods and communities.

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