Sugar Policy and the 2007 Farm Bill. CRS Report for Congress (Updated January 24, 2008)

摘要

The current sugar program is designed to guarantee the minimum price received by growers of sugarcane and sugar beets, and by the firms (raw sugar mills and beet refiners) that process these crops into sugar. To accomplish this, the USDA limits the amount of sugar that processors can sell domestically under marketing allotments and restricts imports. USDA is required to operate the sugar program on a no-cost basis. This means USDA must regulate the U.S. sugar supply using allotments, import quotas, and related authorities so that domestic market prices do not fall below guaranteed minimum price levels. These are set out in law as specified loan rates, which serve as the basis from which USDA derives effective support levels. If the market price is below the support level when a sugar price support loan comes due, its non-recourse feature means a processor can exercise the legal right to forfeit, or hand over, sugar offered to USDA as collateral for the loan in fulfillment of its repayment obligation. This report will focus on the issues raised by the sugar program provisions in major bills and floor amendments.