It's Latino Advocacy Week in Washington, D.C., and leaders in the Hispanic community are pushing for improvements in the upcoming Farm Bill.

The group met with the Chamber of Commerce, and with members of Congress, culminating with an event at the White House.

Hispanic Access Foundation climate manager Hilda Berganza said it will be crucial to fully fund the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or SNAP, known as Cal Fresh in California and formerly known as food stamps.

"As of 2024, 32% of those applying for SNAP are actually in rural areas," she said, "which is a big shift from what we've seen in the last few years - where it's usually within the cities, especially with the cost of living going up everywhere."

The $1.5 trillion version of the Farm Bill being promoted by House Republicans, which is currently being heard in committee, would slash $30 billion from SNAP over the next 10 years. Funding for SNAP and other nutrition programs makes up 80% of the Farm Bill. When it's finalized, the Farm Bill will cover the next five years.

Berganza said 78% of people working in the agriculture industry are Latino, and climate change is making their jobs much harder.

"We want to make sure that we promote climate-smart agricultural initiatives," she said, "and the Farm Bill Risk Management Program to ensure financial security for farmers facing extreme weather, including droughts, floods and heat waves."

Advocates are also asking lawmakers to prioritize the Conservation Stewardship and Environmental Quality Incentives programs, both of which integrate land and wildlife habitat conservation into farming practices to support biodiversity and a more sustainable agriculture system.

For 15 years, U.S. restaurant chains have pledged to stop using gestation crates for pregnant pigs but a new report from an animal welfare group showed many are still dragging their feet.

Devon Dear, institutional outreach manager for the group Animal Equality, said too many restaurants still source their pork from suppliers who lock pregnant pigs in cages so small they cannot turn around. Eleven states, not including New Mexico, have already made the practice illegal, for good reason, Dear emphasized.

"Pigs are under lots of stress in crates," Dear explained. "More stress means more antibiotics; more and more antibiotics means higher chances of antibiotic resistance, and stressed animals are less healthy."

Hog production is not a major contributor to New Mexico's ag statistics, but the state does have its fair share of fast food restaurants. Dear pointed out some big chains have moved away from crates including McDonald's, Wendy's and Chipotle. The report lists Denny's, Chick-fil-A, Dunkin and KFC among 13 companies it contends have not been aggressive enough in reducing their use of crates.

The report comes as Congress is debating an update to the Farm Bill. As proposed, Animal Equality's analysis shows it would have negative effects for animals across the board. She hopes the report will put the inhumane treatment of pregnant pigs in the spotlight.

"One thing we do want to emphasize is that these corporate commitments predate any version of this Farm Bill," Dear noted. "Many are back from 2009, 2012, so irrespective of what happens with the Farm Bill, consumers expect companies to do better for animals."

U.S. pork production is highest in Iowa, while New Mexico is better known for crops such as chili peppers, corn, pecans and onions.

A prominent animal safety group is calling on restaurants to do more to ban the use of animal gestation crates where livestock and poultry are grown for meat.

A new report from the group Animal Equality said some chains have made progress but many are lagging. Dozens of U.S. restaurant companies pledged to end the use of gestation crates for pregnant pigs in their supply chains back in 2008. Since then, 11 states, including Iowa and others in the Midwest, have either restricted their use or outlawed them.

Devon Dear, institutional outreach manager Animal Equality, said some restaurant chains still do not comply but she is encouraged others do.

"We've seen some really big players in this industry move away from crates," Dear acknowledged. "For example, McDonald's, Wendy's, Jack in the Box, Chipotle, Shake Shack, Panera Bread; these companies have all either significantly reduced or eliminated crates. We know that it can be done successfully."

Scientists said gestation crates, which amount to a space about the size of an airplane seat, are breeding grounds for disease. The report lists Denny's, Chick-fil-A, Dunkin, and KFC among 13 companies it contended have not been aggressive enough in reducing their use of the crates. Dear hopes the Farm Bill now being debated in Congress will put the issue in the spotlight.

In Iowa, the use of gestation crates grew along with the proliferation of large factory farms in the 1980s and 90s, where thousands of animals are confined in limited areas, creating health and environmental problems. Dear emphasized Animal Equality is concerned with the threats the conditions pose to animal welfare.

"When you have this many animals in one place, you're getting really high concentrations of feces, you're having all of the environmental impacts of this," Dear pointed out. "Pigs produce a ton of waste, and this has to be disposed of properly to not make nearby communities sick."

Dear argued the higher the pigs' stress levels, the higher the use of antibiotics, which often run off with manure into groundwater. Iowa's factory farmers have said they are responding to consumer demand for more consistently raised, high-quality pork and other products.


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Wells in the Willcox Basin in southeastern Arizona are drying up, and many are pointing the finger at massive agriculture and cattle operations.

Kristine Uhlman is a retired University of Arizona hydrologist who says the Willcox Playa, a basin a few miles south of the city of Willcox, holds fresh water.

But it's also a place where there are no regulations to manage or control extraction.

She contends it caught the eye of the Minnesota-based dairy and beef conglomerate Riverview LLP that began setting up shop in the area in 2014.

Uhlman said, simply put, if you've had the money to drill deeper wells, you got the water.

"That is why those guys from Minnesota discovered they could drop a well and take as much water as they want," said Uhlman, "All the water they want, and nobody is going to stop it."

But the corporation has said the lack of regulation had nothing to do with its decision to move to the southwest, but more to do with the mild climate.

It is also a big economic driver in the region.

Combined, Riverview's Willcox dairy operations house tens of thousands of beef and dairy cows, with mature cattle consuming as many as 50 gallons of water a day.

Dairy and beef operations are expected to grow in the region, according to the Arizona Department of Water Resources.

Uhlman said water resources should be thought of as a savings or checking account.

She said a checking account is where most people have a paycheck deposited every other week, and know how much they have and what they can plan for.

That isn't the case for Arizona's water savings account. She said when water is taken out, there's nothing going back in. She added water regulation is a contentious issue for Cochise County, and encourages residents to do what they can to ensure they'll have enough until things change.

"There is no recharge approach that will recover any of the water that you've used," said Uhlman. "There are no underground rivers. I know there are people in Willcox who keep saying, 'But we have an underground river.' No, you do not."

Uhlman said private well owners are responsible for the upkeep of their wells and the quality of water produced, and that contaminants like bacteria and nitrates from ag operations and cattle can have serious health impacts.

Her Arizona Well Owner's Guide lays out educational information for well owners.