NSAC Archives for December, 2010
NSAC Featured on C-SPAN
Wednesday, December 29th, 2010
This morning, C-SPAN’s Washington Journal program dedicated 40 minutes to the work of the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition. Host Libby Casey interviewed NSAC Executive Director Susan Prolman about the growth of the sustainable agriculture movement. The interview is part of a week-long C-SPAN series on food and agriculture. Also appearing this week are Chandler Goule Read the Rest…
USDA Requests Federal-State Marketing Improvement Program Applications
Thursday, December 23rd, 2010
On Friday, December 23, USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) issued a request for applications for FY2011 funding for the Federal-State Marketing Improvement Program (FSMIP). Congress has yet to appropriate FY2011 funding for FSMIP. AMS program staff, however, decided to issue the notice prior to securing the funding to allow applicants time to leverage funding and Read the Rest…
Congress Extends FY2010 Budget through March 4, 2011
Wednesday, December 22nd, 2010
Late on Tuesday, December 21, Congress passed a Continuing Resolution (CR) scheduled to expire on March 4, 2011, which will fund most federal government agencies at the level provided in their FY2010 Appropriations Bills. The Senate voted 79-16 on Sunday, December 19 to amend the House-passed CR (H.R. 3082). The amended CR then went to Read the Rest…
Congress Sends Food Safety Bill to President’s Desk
Tuesday, December 21st, 2010
On December 21, 2010, the House of Representatives voted 215-144 to pass the Senate version of the Food Safety Modernization Act, with the Tester-Hagan amendment protecting small farms intact. This final vote by the House ends weeks of procedural wrangling, and sends the bill to the President’s desk for enactment. As we reported in a Read the Rest…
2011 Sign-up for EQIP Organic Initiative
Monday, December 20th, 2010
On Monday, December 20, USDA Deputy Secretary Kathleen Merrigan announced $50 million in available funding for the 2011 sign-up of the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) Organic Initiative. The EQIP Organic Initiative, administered by USDA’s Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS), provides financial and technical assistance to certified organic producers and producers transitioning to organic to Read the Rest…
Senate Passes Food Safety Bill (Again)
Monday, December 20th, 2010
In an unexpected late-night move, the Senate passed the Food Safety Modernization Act – with the Tester-Hagan amendment protecting small farms intact – by voice vote on Sunday, December 19th. The bill is expected to be taken up in the House of Representatives tomorrow. The food safety bill hit a roadblock after passing the Senate Read the Rest…
ERS Issues New Report on Organic Contracts
Friday, December 17th, 2010
On Monday, December 13, USDA’s Economic Research Service (ERS) published a new report, “The Role of Contracts in the Organic Supply Chain: 2004 and 2007,” examining the extent and rationale behind contracting in the organic sector. The report, which is based on data collected from nationwide surveys of certified organic processors, manufacturers, and distributors, found Read the Rest…
Lame Duck Appears Headed for End with No Appropriations or Food Safety Bills
Friday, December 17th, 2010
In the early evening on December 16, Senator Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) pulled the pending omnibus appropriations bill for Fiscal Year 2011 when it became clear that no Republicans would vote for it. Earlier in the week, at least five and possibly as many as nine Republicans were indicating privately they would support the Read the Rest…
USDA Issues Request for Proposals for Chesapeake Bay Watershed CCPI
Friday, December 17th, 2010
On Thursday, December 16, USDA issued a special request for proposals for $3.5 million in FY2011 funding under the Cooperative Conservation Partnership Initiative (CCPI) for the Chesapeake Bay Region. The funding will be drawn from the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) and the Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program (WHIP). Special priority will be given to applications Read the Rest…
New Republican Agriculture Committee Members Named
Friday, December 17th, 2010
On Thursday, December 16, Chairman-elect of the House Agriculture Committee Frank Lucas (R-OK) issued a press release welcoming the 16 new Republican members of the committee. Lucas noted the varied geographic backgrounds of the incoming members, whose home states range from North Carolina to Colorado. ”They represent a broad slice of the country and will Read the Rest…
