On Friday, January 28, USDA announced that a Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) general sign-up will be held from March 14-April 14, 2011. This is the 40th general sign-up for the CRP and the second general sign-up since 2006. Secretary Vilsack made the announcement today at the National Pheasant Fest in Omaha, Nebraska. The last general […]
Archives for January 2011
More Committee Assignments
Senate Agriculture Committee The new roster for the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee was announced January 27. As expected, Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) takes over the reins as Chair, and Pat Roberts (R-KS) replaces Saxby Chambliss (R-GA) as the Ranking Member. New to the Committee are two GOP first term GOP Senators — John […]
AFRI Releases RFA for Childhood Obesity Prevention Projects
On Wednesday, January 26, USDA’s National Institute for Food and Agriculture (NIFA) released a Request for Applications (RFA) for the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative’s (AFRI) Childhood Obesity Prevention Challenge Area. AFRI has yet to release FY 2011 RFAs for the remaining four Challenge Areas: climate change, food safety, global food security, and sustainable bioenergy. […]
Democrats Named to House Ag Subcommittees
On Tuesday, January 25, House Agriculture Committee Ranking Member Collin Peterson (D-MN) announced the Democratic members and leadership for the Ag Committee’s newly reorganized Subcommittees. Also, the House Appropriations Committee announced its Democratic subcommittee assignments last week; the four Democratic members of the Subcommittee on Agriculture are listed below. House Agriculture Committee: Subcommittee on Conservation, Energy, […]
USDA Publishes Farm and Ranch Lands Protection Program Final Rule
On Monday, January 24, NRCS published its final rule (FR) for the Farm and Ranch Lands Protection Program (FRPP) in the Federal Register. You can download a pdf version of the final rule here. USDA published its interim final rule (IFR) for public comment on January 16, 2009, and subsequently published an amendment to: Clarify […]
Specialty Crop Webinar Now Available Online
On December 16, USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) hosted an interactive webinar on the Specialty Crop Block Grant (SCBG) program, “Grant Opportunity: Enhancing the Competitiveness of Specialty Crops,” which is now archived and available for playback here. The 50-minute webinar, led by SCBG program manager Trista Etzig, discussed the purpose of the program, the types […]
USDA Announces Funding for Bioenergy
On January 20, USDA Secretary Vilsack announced the award of USDA funding for bioenergy provided in the 2008 Farm Bill’s Energy Title. The funding includes the award of 68 Rural Energy for America Program (REAP) grants to determine the feasibility of renewable energy projects in 27 states. About half the funding goes for feasibility studies […]
Whither Budget and Appropriations for Current Fiscal Year and Beyond?
Very little is clear yet about how House Republican leadership will proceed on government-wide appropriations for the fiscal year that started last October and is currently under a stop-gap continuing resolution. Coming out of the elections, the new majority declared its support for returning immediately to discretionary funding levels that existing in 2008, the last […]
House Ag Committee Questions USDA Regulation of GE Crops
On Thursday, January 20, the House Agriculture Committee held a “Public Forum” on USDA’s Biotechnology Product Regulatory Approval Process. The Forum focused primarily on USDA’s regulation of Monsanto’s Roundup Ready (glyphosate herbicide resistant) genetically engineered (GE) alfalfa under the Plant Protection Act, which has been challenged by organic and consumer organizations and farmers in federal […]
Taxpayers Believe More Should be Spent on Food Safety, Conservation, Reseach, Rural Development
A new study, to be presented at the Southern Agricultural Economics Association 2011 Annual Meeting in February, finds that taxpayers believe that less money should be spent on direct payments, price supports, and crop insurance, while more should be directed toward food safety, natural resource conservation, research and education, and rural development. The paper was […]
Organic Initiative Sign-up Deadline is May 20, 2011
The deadline to apply for the Environmental Quality Incentives (EQIP) Organic Initiative Program is coming up fast. USDA has allocated $50 million for the Organic Initiative Program in 2011, which is available for all three of the following: certified organic growers, those transitioning to organic farming systems, and farmers exempt from formal certification.* The Organic […]
Wal-Mart Announces Healthy Food Campaign
On Thursday, January 20, Wal-Mart executives joined First Lady Michelle Obama in Washington, D.C. to announce the launch of a new five-year initiative to provide Wal-Mart customers with healthier, more affordable food options. The industry giant plans to reduce the prices of its fruits and vegetables and lower the amount of fats, sugars and salts […]
Worldwatch Institute: “State of the World 2011: Innovations that Nourish the Planet”
On Wednesday, January 19, the Worldwatch Institute celebrated the publication of its fifteenth State of the World report with an afternoon of speakers and panels centered on agricultural development, hunger, and poverty alleviation. The new report, State of the World 2011: Innovations that Nourish the Planet, focuses largely on agricultural innovations that reduce hunger, increase agricultural productivity, […]
Democrats Named to House Agriculture Committee
On Wednesday, January 19, Rep. Collin Peterson (D-MN), ranking Democrat on the House Agriculture Committee, announced the new Democratic members of that Committee, a slate dominated by New Englanders. Joining the Committee for the first time are Representatives Chellie Pingree (ME), Joe Courtney (CT), Peter Welch (VT), and James McGovern (MA). Also joining are Representatives […]
Proposed Rule Issued for Direct Marketing Program
On Wednesday, January 19, USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service issued proposed rules for the Farmers’ Market Promotion Program (FMPP). The FMPP is a competitive grants program that makes federal funds available for projects to establish, expand, and promote farmers markets, roadside stands, community-supported agriculture, internet sales, agritourism activities, and other direct producer-to-consumer marketing opportunities. The FMPP […]
2012 Farm Bill Summit: The Road to Reform
On January 12-13, NSAC hosted a 2012 Farm Bill Summit in Washington, D.C. The Summit brought together 125 participants representing 95 organizations, an impressive array of experts and activists engaged in furthering the aims of the public interest community in the next Farm Bill. Organizations included farm, conservation, rural development, public health, food system, […]
NSAC Annual Winter Meeting
On January 10-11, 75 people representing over 50 NSAC member organizations convened for the Annual Winter Meeting of the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition. This year’s meeting took place in Washington DC. The meeting began with a Progress Report on 2010 priorities, including a a celebration of our victories in getting appropriate food safety measures for […]
House Agriculture Committee Re-Organizes
As often happens following elections that shift the party in the majority, the new Republican leadership of the House Agriculture Committee reorganized the panel’s subcommittees. As we previously have reported, Rep. Frank Lucas (R-OK) is the new Chair of the Full Committee, and former Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-VA) has been named Vice Chair. There are […]
First 2010 AFRI Awards Announced
USDA’s National Institute for Food and Agriculture (NIFA) dribbled out two announcements last week on 2010 awards under the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI). AFRI is the largest of several NIFA competitive grants research, education and extension programs. On January 13, a grant award to Oregon State University for childhood obesity prevention in rural […]
CSP Conservation Enhancements and Practices Available for FY 2011 Sign-up
As we reported in a blog post earlier this month, USDA had finalized but not yet released the full list of conservation enhancements and conservation practices available for the FY 2011 Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) sign-up. This new information, which includes revisions to environmental benefit scores and the descriptions of the new enhancements, is now […]
NOP Announces Draft “Made With Organic” Labeling Guidance
On Thursday, January 13th, the National Organic Program (NOP), administered by USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), published draft guidance on “made with organic” product labeling. The guidance appears in the Federal Register and is open for public comment for the next two months. The document clarifies the acceptable wording for labels on products containing at […]
USDA Provides Update on Seasonal High Tunnel Pilot
On January 7, 2011, USDA released the latest results of its Seasonal High Tunnel Pilot Program, launched by USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in December of 2009. As of early January 2011, USDA had distributed more than $13 million for the construction of 2,422 high tunnels in 43 states. The USDA press release includes […]
USDA Releases New School Lunch Nutrition Standards
On Thursday, January 13, USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) published revised nutrition requirements for the National School Lunch and School Breakfast Programs in the Federal Register. The proposed changes, which are based on the recommendations in this 2009 report from the National Academies’ Institute of Medicine, would increase the availability of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and fat-free and low-fat […]
USDA Releases First 2011 Request for Applications for AFRI
On Friday, January 7, USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) released the first of seven 2011 requests for applications (RFA) for the Agriculture, Food and Research Initiative (AFRI) competitive grants program. AFRI is the largest of the NIFA competitive grants programs, which also include smaller specialized programs for sustainable agriculture, organic farming, and […]