Will Hild: American Farmers and ESG

A new front has opened in the fight against ESG. On Monday, top Agriculture Officials from 12 states sent a letter to 6 of America's largest banks, accusing them of colluding to force the ESG agenda onto American famers and ranchers. The letter asserts that, as members of the Net-Zero Banking Alliance (NZBA), Bank of America, Citi Bank, JPMorgan, Morgan Stanley, Wells Fargo, and Goldman Sachs are all working in lockstep to force the ESG agenda onto the entire domestic food supply chain.

The NZBA represents the worst of the worst of anti-competitive collusion in the service of the ESG agenda. Formed in 2021, NZBA membership includes the worlds largest banks, representing about 40% of global banking assets, all committed to eliminating carbon emissions by 2050. That's an incredible amount of power and influence.  For the last three years the NZBA has used its influence to push radical net-zero policies on companies and governments around the world, pushing farming in Europe to the edge of destruction. Thankfully, America's Agricultural Commissioners are determined to resist.

'We will not bend the knee to the failed, left-wing climate agenda of the United Nations,' Georgia agriculture official tells FOX Business.

"Now more than ever, banks that do business with America should be unquestionably supporting American industries — and that starts with the one that puts food on our tables, clothes on our backs, and shelter over our heads," said Georgia Agriculture Commissioner Tyler Harper. "The UN's Net-Zero Banking Alliance would be the equivalent of a run on the bank for our nation's agriculture industry and pose a serious threat to our national security — and it must be stopped." The letter warned the banks that implementing the NZBA's agenda would require a complete overhaul of on-farm infrastructure.  "This would have a catastrophic impact on our farmers. Proposed net-zero roadmaps describe dramatic, impractical, and costly changes to American farming and ranching operations such as switching to electric machinery and equipment; installing on-site solar panels and wind turbines; moving to organic fertilizer; altering rice-field irrigation systems; and slashing U.S. ruminant meat consumption in half, costing millions of livestock jobs," the letter stated.

Agricultural commissioners have broad authority to request information and launch investigations related to banks' involvement in the Net-Zero Banking Alliance.

Farmers and ranchers are the foundation of our economy and international climate cartels like the NZBA pose nothing less than an existential threat to their future. By forcing ESG, Brian Moynihan and his cohort have driven the cost of doing business for small family farmers and independent ranchers to astronomical heights. The Ag officials and Commissioners hit the nail on the head in their letter: should their misguided climate extremism continue unabated, these megabanks will put our entire food supply in serious jeopardy. I applaud the states for their action, and I look forward to working with them to defend American consumers from this corporate malfeasance.