Durbin Meets With Illinois Soybean Association
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), a member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, met with members of the Illinois Soybean Association. The group discussed concerns with the federal Farm Bill process, the importance of federal policies that support biodiesel and agricultural research, and the harmful effects on agriculture in policies proposed by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. known as Making American Healthy Again.
Durbin spoke about the Trump Administration’s cuts on agricultural research, which has targeted institutions like the National Soybean Germplasm Collection at the University of Illinois. Since the late 1940s, this USDA-funded genetic seed bank and scientists have been working to cure crop diseases and find better yields and increased nutrition in soybeans, which creates stronger crops and new markets for Illinois farmers. If this lab closes, as proposed in the President’s Fiscal Year 2026 budget, the U.S. could cede its agricultural research leadership to China, where the only other genetic seed bank is located.
“In my meeting with the Illinois Soybean Association, we discussed federal policies important to Illinois agriculture and the importance of agricultural research and preserving world-class institutions like the National Soybean Germplasm Collection at the University of Illinois,” said Durbin. “As a member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, I will continue to advocate for research funding for our critical institutions.”
Photos of the meeting are available here.
Earlier this week, Durbin published an op-ed about the importance of funding agriculture research to ensure that China does not overtake the U.S. as a global leader in federal agricultural research.
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