Davids Visits Ottawa Co-Op to Highlight Local Ag Supply Chain, Lower Grocery Costs Ahead of Farm Bill

SPRING HILL, KS — Today, Representative Sharice Davids, a member of the U.S. House Agriculture Committee, visited the Ottawa Cooperative Association (Co-Op) to hear directly from local producers and discuss her efforts to strengthen the regional agricultural supply chain and lower grocery prices for Kansas families. The visit came ahead of next week’s long-awaited Farm Bill markup, which has been delayed for several years.

“When we invest in our local food systems, we’re not just supporting farmers and producers — we’re lowering costs at the checkout line, creating good-paying jobs, and making sure families in Kansas have access to fresh, healthy food,” said Davids. “I’ve heard from folks across the community who want more affordable options and more control over where their food comes from. Strengthening the local agricultural supply chain helps us do both, and that’s what I’m focused on for next week’s Farm Bill markup.”

Why strengthening the local agricultural supply chain matters:

• Lowers grocery costs: Local food cuts out middlemen, reducing fuel, labor, and distribution expenses.
• Delivers fresher food: Produce grown and sold locally lasts longer, reducing waste and giving consumers more value for their money.
• Boosts local economies: Money spent on local food stays in the community, supporting small businesses and creating more jobs — 13 jobs per $1M in local sales compared to 3 in non-local.
• Builds resilience: A strong local supply chain is less vulnerable to global disruptions and price shocks.

“Thank you, Rep Davids, for taking the time to visit The Ottawa Cooperative Association,” said Clark Wenger, President, Ottawa Co-Op. “We are grateful for your visit and the opportunity to discuss the challenges impacting agriculture. Your engagement with our cooperative means a great deal to our members.”

Davids recently helped introduce the Farm and Family Relief Act with her Democratic colleagues on the House Agriculture Committee. This is the first bill this year aimed at giving real relief to family farmers and working families struggling with rising costs caused by President Trump’s tariffs and cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).

Today, Davids also reintroduced her Resilient Food Supply Chain and Affordability Act. This bill would make permanent the Resilient Food Systems Infrastructure (RFSI) Program, which strengthens the food supply chain, supports local farmers, creates jobs, and helps lower grocery costs for consumers.

Davids has made lowering the cost of groceries for families and small businesses a priority in Congress, including by: 

• Completing a one-day tour to highlight how strengthening supply chains helps lower grocery prices for Kansas families.
• Supporting the bipartisan Healthy Poultry Assistance and Indemnification (HPAI) Act, which ensures fair compensation for all farms affected by avian flu, including those in both infected and buffer zones.
• Urging the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to begin enforcing the Robinson-Patman Act to prevent corporate price discrimination that drives up grocery costs for consumers.
• Voting to pass the Lower Food and Fuel Costs Act to shore up the food and agriculture supply chain, assure fair competition in the meat and poultry sectors, and lower food and gasoline costs for consumers.
• Supporting the Price Gouging Prevention Act, legislation ensuring large corporations can’t take advantage of consumers at the grocery store.
• Holding multiple roundtables with Kansas businesses, manufacturing, and technology leaders on how recent legislation to improve supply chains will help boost their businesses’ financial security.
• Working a “Sharice’s Shift” at a local Price Chopper, where she helped store employees unload deliveries from shipping trucks, stock grocery shelves, and bag groceries. 

To support Kansas producers, Davids has also embarked on a Farm Bill listening tour, where she visited a poultry and livestock operation in Anderson County, a co-op in Franklin County, a goat farm in Miami County, an organic vegetable farm in Johnson County, and an educational community farm in Wyandotte County. Davids also toured a Garnett-based renewable ethanol producer, participated in FFA activities at Spring Hill High School, served a school lunch at Black Bob Elementary in Olathe, spoke with industry leaders on financial support programs for farmers, toured a dairy farm in Garnett, and more.