NSAC Archives for May, 2011
Over 50 Groups Deliver Letter Opposing Cuts to Conservation Programs
Tuesday, May 31st, 2011
On Tuesday, May 31, NSAC and more than 50 other organizations delivered a letter to members of the House Appropriations Committee in opposition to the conservation cuts contained in fiscal year (FY) 2012 agriculture appropriations bill passed by the House Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee last week. The letter was delivered ahead of markup of the FY2012 Read the Rest…
Sen. Stabenow Holds First 2012 Farm Bill Hearing
Friday, May 27th, 2011
On Thursday, May 26, USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack addressed members of the Senate Agriculture Committee at the Committee’s first hearing on the 2012 Farm Bill. A second panel of witnesses followed, comprised of former Secretary of Agriculture Dan Glickman, Michigan farmer and United Soybean Board founding director Barry Mumby, Dr. Andrew Rosenberg of Conservation International, Read the Rest…
National Organic Certification Cost Share Program Releases 2011 Report to Congress
Friday, May 27th, 2011
The National Organic Program (NOP) has released its 2011 Organic Certification Cost Share Program Report to Congress. The report contains full information for Fiscal Year 2010 on the number of participating states, the number of producers and handlers the program served, and expenditures. Read our earlier blog post for an analysis of FY 2010 for Read the Rest…
Health Promotion and Economic Development Funding Can Support Sustainable Agriculture
Friday, May 27th, 2011
On May 20, the Obama administration announced the Jobs and Innovation Accelerator Challenge, a sixteen-agency collaboration that will offer up to $33 million in funding to encourage public-private partnerships of regional industry clusters. Regional industry clusters (RICs) that promote workforce development and a broad base of related industries can apply for up to $2.2 million Read the Rest…
Lawsuit to Restrict Antibiotic Use in Industrial Animal Production
Friday, May 27th, 2011
On Wednesday, May 25, NSAC members the Food Animal Concerns Trust and the Union of Concerned Scientists joined the Center for Science in the Public Interest, the Natural Resources Defense Council, and Public Citizen in a lawsuit to compel the federal Food & Drug Administration (FDA) to respond to citizen petitions requesting that FDA take Read the Rest…
Organic Transitions Program Grant Applications Now Open
Wednesday, May 25th, 2011
On Tuesday, May 24, USDA released the Request for Applications (RFA) for its Organic Transitions Program. The overall goal of the Organic Transitions Program is to support the development and implementation of research, extension, and higher education programs to improve the competitiveness of organic livestock and crop producers, as well as those who are newly Read the Rest…
Breathtaking in its Recklessness
Wednesday, May 25th, 2011
. If passed this bill will endanger our nation’s supply of clean water, increase the already alarming levels of soil erosion, and sell our farmers out to multinational meat and poultry conglomerates … to name just a few. ACT NOW Tell the Senate to Reject this Reckless Bill Yesterday afternoon, the House Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee Read the Rest…
House Ag Appropriations Subcommittee Passes FY2012 Funding Bill
Tuesday, May 24th, 2011
On Tuesday, March 24, the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies passed by voice vote its fiscal year (FY) 2012 agriculture appropriations bill, which would cut USDA and FDA discretionary programs by 13.4 percent on top of a similar amount in the FY 2011 bill completed last month. Read the Rest…
House FY2012 Appropriations Bill Would Slash Conservation, Rural Development, and Research Programs
Tuesday, May 24th, 2011
On Monday, May 23, the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies released a draft of its fiscal year (FY) 2012 agriculture appropriations bill. The Subcommittee will debate, potentially amend, and almost certainly pass the bill on Tuesday during an afternoon markup. Before the bill can become law, Read the Rest…
The Long and Winding (Budget Deal) Road
Friday, May 20th, 2011
Washington continued down the long and winding road toward a budget agreement this week. Depending on one’s point of view, nothing happened or lots happened. What did not happen was introduction of a Senate budget resolution, much less mark-up of a resolution in the Senate Budget Committee. But here are some of the things that Read the Rest…
