State Senate Resolution 0499 proposes to create yet another industry-driven "livestock task force." The group includes the Illinois Farm Bureau, the Illinois Beef and Pork Producers, Illinois Corn Growers and Soybean Associations, the Department of Agriculture, Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, Department of Natural Resources and the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity. They will collectively "study and research the negative effects of loss of local producers" and make legislative suggestions.

Blatantly disregarded are sustainable agriculture coalitions, consumers, citizens and public health stakeholders. State Sen. Lawrence Walsh, sponsor of SR 0499, boldly states that the makeup of the group will "not to be so unyielding that nothing is accomplished." Walsh is also championing SB 2835 to accomplish a ban of all public hearings and nuisance suits on factory farms. And behind the scenes, livestock industry groups are considering attracting poultry integrators like Tyson and Perdue to set up corporate chicken factories in Illinois.

State agencies should protect the citizens and resources, not partner with private lobby groups like the Farm Bureau, which profit by selling ag inputs. More importantly, taxpayers fund land grant universities to direct and conduct research. It is not the job of the Legislature to direct these activities.

Decades of studies reveal that large-scale industrial farming tends to cause detrimental community impacts, according to a report by Ohio State University to South Dakota's attorney general. Cornell University finds that states with anti-corporate farming laws experience more agricultural diversity and healthier rural communities. Research from Illinois State University demonstrates that large hog operations hinder the economic growth in rural communities.

The facts are already in, and sustainable farming wins. It's time to support the type of farming the public will embrace, not run away from. Is a task force necessary? No. And an industry-weighted one with an ulterior motive is even worse.