Archives for October, 2008
The Accidental Activist
Thursday, October 30th, 2008
Lisa Kivirist shares her personal first-time experience helping support new Farm Bill programs through providing input at the Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program (BFRDP) CSREES Public Meeting to Solicit Stakeholder Input in Washington DC on October 27, 2008. She and her family raise a diversified, organically-raised mix of fruits and vegetables on their Wisconsin farm and B&B, Inn Serendipity, which is powered 100% by renewable energy. Kivirist is the co-author of ECOpreneuring and Rural Renaissance and is a Kellogg Food & Society Policy Fellow. She regularly blogs for Green Options Media.
Lisa Kivirist and her son Liam, harvest onions on their farm in Wisconsin. Photo: John Ivanko
When my husband and I named our Wisconsin farm and B&B “Inn Serendipity” over a decade ago, we did so out of personal homage to the “serendipity” philosophy, that idea that life’s journey may take you in unexpected – magical – detours, often leading to places you never originally expected to be.
Build it and they will come. Name your business “serendipity” anything – and unexpected, fulfilling detours become the norm. Flash back fifteen years ago when I was on the cookie-cutter corporate cubicle career path; I never thought I’d be happily living the rural farming life. Flash back a year ago when I was realized I needed to sow seeds beyond our five acres if I was to truly take responsibility in creating a healthy, sustainable food systems and world for our seven year old son, Liam, to grow old in. I never thought I’d be speaking at the CSREES Public Meeting to Solicit Stakeholder Input in Washington, DC, a session designed to garner input for the new Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program (BFRDP). Hence, I became the accidental activist, educating myself on these issues, finding outlets and channeling my inner Gandhi to “be the change you wish to see.”
Flash back to last Monday’s stakeholder input session, as I again serendipitously found myself giving five minutes of allotted input. With beet red-stained hands from our fall harvest the week before on our farm, at first I felt out of my element in a conference room of suited, experienced experts, seasoned in these issues. But I quickly learned there’s a definite chair for me, for all of us, at such a table. The voice of any of us – all of us – that support sustainable agriculture can find a direct outlet to help shape the policies of the new Farm Bill. Whether you grow, sell or eat, here are some tips I learned on channeling your inner activist:
Weekly Update – October 25, 20008
Saturday, October 25th, 2008
THIS WEEK
Justice Department Files Anti-Trust Lawsuit against JBS: On Monday, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a lawsuit under the Clayton Antitrust Act to block JBS — a Brazilian firm which is the world’s largest beef packer — from acquiring the National Beef Packing Company. Attorneys General from 13 states (CO, IA, KS, MN, MO, MT, ND, OH, OK, OR, SD, TX and WY) joined the lawsuit. JBS has already acquired Swift’s beef packing operations and is in the process of completing acquisition of the Smithfield Beef Group. In addition, JBS is also acquiring the giant Five Rivers Ranch Cattle Feeding complex that houses 800,000 head of cattle in 5 states.
The acquisition of National Beef Packing would make JBS the largest U.S. beef packer, controlling more than one third of the U.S. fed cattle slaughter capacity and USDA-graded box beef production. In the complaint, the DOJ states that the acquisition would restructure the U.S. beef packing industry by eliminating a competitively significant packer. The result would be concentration of over 80 percent of U.S. fed cattle beef packing in the hands of three firms: JBS, Tyson Foods Inc., and Cargill Inc. The complaint contends that as a result of the acquisition, cattle producers, ranchers, and feedlots would likely receive lower prices for their cattle while grocers, food service companies, and consumers would likely pay higher prices for beef. The DOJ also stated that there are no efficiencies from the merger that would eliminate or mitigate the anticompetitive effects of the merger.
Weekly Update – October 20, 2008
Monday, October 20th, 2008
THIS WEEK
Sodsaver Letters Delivered to Prairie State Governors: The 2008 Farm Bill provides the opportunity for the Governors of five states with native prairie — IA, MN, MT, ND and SD — to opt into a Sodsaver provision. If the Governor opts into Sodsaver, grassland in the state without a prior cropping history will be ineligible for taxpayer-provided federal payments for purchasing crop insurance on converted grasslands. Landowners are not prohibited from breaking grassland, but federal crop insurance subsidies would no longer provide incentives for doing so.
Brad Redlin, Agriculture Director for the Izaak Walton League of America and Co-chair of SAC’s Conservation and Environment Committee, took the lead in issuing the letters urging the Governors of IA, MN, and SD to opt in. SAC signed onto each letter, along with many key wildlife, conservation, sustainable agriculture and farmer and livestock associations in each state. Similar letters to the Governors of MT and ND will likely be delivered before the end of the year.
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Saturday, October 11th, 2008
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Weekly Update – October 11, 2008
Saturday, October 11th, 2008
THIS WEEK
Meltdown Raising Stimulus Chances? On Wednesday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) hinted she may call the House back into a “lame duck” session after the election after all. By Friday, Democratic Campaign Committee Chairman Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) was even suggesting a possible return to consider the stimulus package prior to the November 4 election.
Weekly Update — Special Edition
Wednesday, October 1st, 2008
Even as Congress tries to figure out how it will try to deal with the financial market bailout, extension of expiring tax breaks, emergency disaster relief, and other year-end measures as it comes to the close of this congressional session, there have been some breakthroughs on the agriculture legislative front leading us to issue this special edition of the Weekly Update. We will summarize other end-of-session activities in the regular edition on Friday. In the meantime, we want to let our readers know more immediately about the following SAC wins.
Community Food Grant Funding Rescue: As we mentioned last Friday, a farm bill technical correction bill that would salvage the fiscal year 2008 funding ($5 million) for the Community Food Grants program started moving as the clock on this Session of Congress wound down. Following Senate passage by unanimous consent of a bill introduced by Chairman Tom Harkin (D-IA) to restore the $5 million for the current year, we are happy to report the House approved the identical measure on Monday and the bill headed to the White House for the President’s signature on Tuesday. Read on…