Iowa farmers last week ap­­plauded the U.S. House of Re­­presentatives passage of a new five-year farm bill after a difficult and frustrating two-year legislative struggle.

The farm bill passed the House on a 251-166 vote, with the entire Iowa delegation voting in favor of it. The U.S. Senate is also likely to approve the farm bill early this week, and President Barack Obama is expected to sign it soon after.

The nearly 1,000-page bill, which was hammered out by a conference committee earlier in the week, would revamp the safety net...