Many farmers are frustrated that they either have to hold on to older equipment that they can repair themselves to save money or buy newer equipment that has much higher repair costs and restrictions by companies.
WASHINGTON — The high price of food at the grocery store may have you wondering what is going on at America's farms?
When you ask farmers if anything can be done to make their lives easier, one answer emerges quite frequently. And that is regarding the right to repair.To call Sean Kayne a farmer wouldn't be quite right. While he owns dozens of acres near Providence, Rhode Island, he doesn't farm as a career. He grows food as a hobby. In fact, his day job focuses on computers and auto safety.Sean, however, is experiencing something that is impacting the biggest farms and farmers in our country.
The topic brought Jared Wilson to Washington recently for National Agriculture Week. He’s a fifth-generation farmer from Butler, Missouri and unlike Sean, he needs the newer machines with the updated software to run his farm. When his machine goes offline, delays are created waiting for specific technicians. Local, independent technicians are often not allowed access let alone the farmer.Delays on the farm, Wilson says, can mean higher food prices and even an increase in taxpayer-funded aid to farmers.Some in Congress are recognizing this as an issue and have proposed legislation to force companies to start sharing their technology. A separate legal fight has begun too.
President Biden has signed executive orders asking agencies to address the issue. If you’re wondering why the world's largest tractor companies don't want farmers fixing their own machines, the answer is on John Deere’s website.However, within the last few weeks executives at John Deere announced a plan to start sharing more software information, beginning in May. Additional access is expected next year as well.
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