Lessons from the Past and Options for a Bio-Fueled Future

The purpose of this paper is to explore farm policy with an eye towards adopting policies that can lead to a departure of 70 plus years of needing to compensate farmers for low prices. The first step is to review where we have been with farm policy and where we are now. What factors have driven change in the way that farm programs operate? What have we learned from past policy experiments that can guide us in pursuit of a new direction for farm policy? Is it even realistic to think of an agriculture future free of price subsidies? We begin by reviewing where we have been with farm programs and where we currently are now.