Congressional leaders released the text of the FY 2024 Agriculture Appropriations bill. The bill would fund the USDA and FDA at a total of just over $26 billion through September 30, 2024. NSAC members are relieved to have in hand a final FY2024 bill that will at last bring stability. Under tremendous constraints, appropriators delivered a bill that has some bright spots alongside painful cuts.
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Riders in the Night: Harmful Provisions in the House Spending Bill
Funding for USDA and three other federal departments is set to expire at midnight March 1, absent congressional approval of a FY24 appropriations bill, or an extension of current funding. Amidst final-hour congressional negotiations to fend off a shutdown, several policy “riders” have emerged as sticking points in reaching a deal on agriculture spending in particular. This post examines several proposed policy riders as Congress seeks to conclude FY24 appropriations negotiations…. Read More →
Release: NSAC Publishes Unsustainable: State of the Farm Safety Net
The National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition has released a new report, Unsustainable: State of the Farm Safety Net. The farm safety net includes crop insurance, commodity, and disaster programs that farmers and ranchers rely on when disaster strikes – but it leaves small to mid-sized, beginning, and diversified farmers behind. This report reveals which states and commodities received the most farm subsidies from 2017 to 2022 and argues these costly programs are not suited to meet the needs of all producers in the face of worsening climate change…. Read More →
RFA Roundup: Spring 2024 Sustainable Agriculture Funding Opportunities
USDA has announced several funding opportunities for sustainable agriculture. This blog post outlines the funding guidelines, application deadlines, and program requirements for a range of food and farm system grants funded through USDA that are currently accepting applications. The funding opportunities fall into three categories: Research and Education, Local Food (including urban and rural-focused programs) and Nutrition, Climate, Conservation, and Energy…. Read More →
Release: 2022 Census of Agriculture Underscores Need for Policy Shift
Today, the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) released the highly-anticipated results of the 2022 Census of Agriculture. The Census remains the most comprehensive source of agricultural data for states and counties across the United States and serves as a guide for federal farm program, policy, and funding decisions. The National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC) welcomes the release of the 2022 Census of Agriculture data, which comes at a crucial moment for federal agriculture policy…. Read More →
Farmer Roundtable Highlights Urgent Need to Bolster IRA Funding for Sustainable Farming
This post highlights some of the farmers who came from across the country to discuss firsthand how the IRA has provided much-needed, long-sought federal funding to bolster farmer-led conservation efforts. Their stories of how climate change is affecting their farms were shared at a public roundtable hosted by the House Sustainable Energy and Environment Coalition (SEEC) looking at the Inflation Reduction Act’s (IRA) transformational investments in climate and clean energy solutions for America’s food producers. … Read More →
Release: NSAC Applauds Introduction of the Innovative Practices for Soil Health Act of 2024
The Innovative Practices for Soil Health Act provides common-sense, straightforward support for high-impact perennial practices through NCRS conservation programs. It also ensures increased technical capacity at USDA for new and exciting perennial practices through a series of agroforestry centers. This bill is a win for farmers committed to building soil health across their operation through plant diversity and strong, living roots…. Read More →
The Fifth National Climate Assessment: Implications for Agriculture
The Fifth National Climate Assessment (NCA5) highlights the current and future implications of climate change for agriculture in the US. The assessment reveals a grim outlook with substantial climate shifts predicted across the country and emphasizes the rising risks to agricultural production due to climate change, ranking this evaluation as “very likely” with “very high confidence” in its accuracy, while also presenting planned solutions to reduce emissions and transform farming systems towards greater resilience…. Read More →
Release: Farmers Shine Spotlight on Vital Impact of Climate Funding at the IRA Conservation and Farmers Roundtable
Members of the House Sustainable Energy and Environment Coalition (SEEC) hosted a public roundtable highlighting the Inflation Reduction Act’s (IRA) transformational investments in climate and clean energy solutions for America’s food producers. Farmers from across the country discussed firsthand how the IRA has provided much-needed, long-sought federal funding to bolster farmer-led conservation efforts. Farmers’ firsthand stories of how climate change is affecting their farms demonstrate the importance of protecting the federal programs helping them build resilience. … Read More →
Media Advisory (Cross Post): SEEC Celebrates America’s Food Producers Implementing Climate-Smart Conservation
NSAC is pleased to announce the upcoming roundtable highlighting the Inflation Reduction Act’s (IRA) transformational investments in climate and clean energy solutions for America’s food producers, hosted by members of the House Sustainable Energy and Environment Coalition (SEEC). This briefing builds on NSAC’s work sharing farmer climate stories through its recent farmer climate media project and offers a chance to deliver those stories directly to lawmakers…. Read More →
Sowing Seeds of Impact: NSAC’s Year in Review and Vision for 2024
It has been a long, unusual year for federal policy, and the implications for sustainable agriculture and food systems policy have been unmistakable. In our latest blog post, NSAC highlights all that we achieved in 2023 towards building a more sustainable, equitable transformations in the food and farming system…. Read More →
Farmer Conservation Stories: Why Inflation Reduction Act Funding Must Remain Focused on Climate Change
This is the second post in a two-part blog series highlighting stories of farmers who have used practices from the Climate-Smart Agriculture and Forestry practice list to build climate resilience and mitigation solutions. This week’s post shares stories of how farmers are preparing for and responding to climate change. … Read More →
Inflation Reduction Act Conservation Dollars Are a Vital Bulwark Against Climate Change
The Inflation Reduction Act allocated nearly $20 billion in new agricultural conservation funding across key programs to address climate change challenges faced by farmers. This historic investment, distributed through programs like the Conservation Stewardship Program and Environmental Quality Incentives Program, supports practices that enhance both greenhouse gas mitigation and on-farm resilience. Despite positive impacts reported by farmers who received funding, challenges persist, including the need for increased financial support, overcoming barriers in accessing funds, and ensuring the broad implementation of conservation practices to build a more climate-resilient agricultural landscape…. Read More →
Release: USDA Updates Good Farming Practice Definition, Strengthening Support for Conservation Practice Adoption
USDA’s Risk Management Agency (RMA) announced important updates to the definition of Good Farming Practices (GFPs), removing a longstanding obstacle to the adoption of Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS)-approved conservation practices and enhancements for insured producers. … Read More →
Release: The EFFECTIVE Food Procurement Act Seeks to Increase Equity in USDA’s Food Purchases
The EFFECTIVE Food Procurement Act outlines a new, values-based approach for the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to purchase commodities that supply child, senior, and community nutrition programs across the nation. The Act also directs USDA to target technical assistance and food safety investments for small and socially disadvantaged producers and businesses to ensure they have fair access to USDA contracts. … Read More →
Release: NSAC Welcomes Farm Bill Extension, Urges Lawmakers to Pass the Next Farm Bill in Early 2024
NSAC celebrates the passage of an extension to the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 (the Farm Bill, which had expired on September 30) until September 2024. The Senate’s passage yesterday of the House continuing resolution means the government will avoid a shutdown and lawmakers will have time to develop a comprehensive five-year farm bill. President Biden is expected to sign the extension, which is included in the continuing resolution to fund the government, this week…. Read More →
Release: NSAC Celebrates Final Rule Promoting Transparency for Contract Poultry Growers
NSAC celebrated Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack for publishing the first of several expected final rules to modernize the century-old Packers and Stockyards Act: “Transparency in Poultry Growing Contracts and Tournaments.” The rulemaking process was set in motion as part of the Biden Administration’s Executive Order on Promoting Competition in the American Economy in 2021. … Read More →
Release: Senate Advances Agriculture Appropriations Bill
Today, the Senate passed its Fiscal Year (FY) 2024 “minibus” appropriations package, which includes discretionary funding for agriculture and food access programs such as Conservation Technical Assistance and the Sustainable Agriculture Research & Education Program, among others. “Minibus” refers to a small package of different appropriations bills, which in this case consists of Military Construction and Veterans Affairs; Transportation, Housing and Urban Development; and Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration. … Read More →
What the Expiration, and Likely Extension, of the 2018 Farm Bill Means for Food and Agriculture
On October 1, 2023, the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 – more commonly known as the 2018 Farm Bill – expired. Thankfully, in recent days Congress has begun to turn its attention toward a much-needed extension of the 2018 Farm Bill. Yet until an extension is passed, many essential programs will continue to be impacted. This blog post takes a deep dive into the current and potential future impacts of the expired bill, examining which programs are stranded, and what it means for food and agriculture…. Read More →
Release: NSAC Praises Introduction of the Supporting Urban & Innovative Farming Act of 2023 in the House
Representatives Alma Adams, Shontel Brown, Barbara Lee, Jonathan Jackson, Nikema Williams, Eleanor Norton, Jasmine Crockett, Danny Davis, Donald Payne Jr, Elissa Slotkin, Jamie Raskin, Josh Gottheimer, James McGovern, and Sheila Jackson Lee introduced the Supporting Urban & Innovative Farming Act. These Congressional champions join their Senate colleagues in their efforts to secure support for the Office of Urban Agriculture and Innovative Production, while improving content and service delivery for urban, suburban, and innovative producers throughout USDA’s service center network…. Read More →
Release: AFFIRM Act Would Level the Playing Field, Save Taxpayers Billions
The Assisting Family Farmers Through Insurance Reform Measures Act, or the AFFIRM Act, was introduced by Representative Earl Blumenauer (D-OR-3). This bill presents important reforms to improve the federal crop insurance program to better serve U.S. farmers equitably and use taxpayer dollars more efficiently…. Read More →
What’s At Stake: Appropriations, Shutdown, and Farm Bill
Last week, both the House and Senate were back in session after more than a month of Congressional recess. As of today, Congress has one week – just 4 session days – until the end of Fiscal Year (FY) 2023 on September 30. This post looks at where things stand across all of these moving pieces as Congress enters a crucial week of fiscal negotiations that will undoubtedly impact on federal food and farm policy…. Read More →
Release: Fresh Produce Procurement Reform Act Introduced in Both Houses
Representatives Rosa DeLauro (D-CT-03) and David Valadao (R-CA-22) and Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) introduced the Fresh Produce Procurement Reform Act (Procurement Reform Act) in both the House and the Senate. The Procurement Reform Act directs the United State Department of Agriculture (USDA) to implement a fresh produce purchasing program that prioritizes purchasing from beginning, small and mid-size, and socially disadvantaged farmers and distributes high quality produce to food insecure communities nationwide. … Read More →
Correcting the Record: The IRA Made More Money Available for All Conservation Work
The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) invested billions of dollars in working lands conservation programs, making more money available to all farmers and for all conservation activities. This post looks at what this means for farmers hoping to implement CSAF practices as well as other conservation activities…. Read More →