Washington, DC February 23, 2015 – The U.S. Department of Agriculture has extended the sign-up period for the 2015 edition of the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) – the federal farm bill’s largest working lands conservation program. Farmers and ranchers now have two additional weeks – until March 13 – to complete the initial application form. Coinciding […]
NSAC’S Blog
Nearly $160 Million Available for Agricultural Research and Extension
Successful, sustainable farming systems rely on sound research to provide innovative solutions to the challenges that farmers of all kinds face on their farms every day, today and into the future. Since 2008, the Agriculture Food and Research Initiative (AFRI), USDA’s largest competitive research grant program, has provided grants to universities and non-profit and private […]
NSAC Policy Director and Former NRCS Chief Pen Guest Blog for AGree
On February 18, NSAC Policy Director Ferd Hoefner and former NRCS Chief Bruce Knight published the following blog on AGree’s foodandagpolicy.org website. The blog explores the intersection of crop insurance and conservation practices that could improve the health of the land while also increasing yields. The blog was posted in conjunction with the release of […]
Healthy Food Access Project Funding For FY 2015 Available Through HHS
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released a modified Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) for fiscal year (FY) 2015, updated from last year’s announcement for Community Development Corporations (CDCs) under the Healthy Food Financing Initiative (HFFI). HFFI is a tri-agency program administered by the U.S. Department of Treasury, HHS, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to […]
Community Food Project Funding Now Available
Approximately $9 million will be available for this funding cycle. Applications are due 5:00pm EST on March 17, 2015…. Read More →
House and Senate Bills Would Eliminate Harvest Price Option Subsidy
On Thursday February 12, Senators Jeff Flake (R-AZ) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) teamed with Representative John Duncan (R-TN) to introduce legislation in both the Senate (S.463) and House (H.R.892) to eliminate the subsidy for the Harvest Price Option (HPO) within the federal crop insurance program. The Congressional Budget Office has estimated that this legislation, if […]
A Closer Look at the Agricultural Conservation Easement Program in 2014
In early September of 2014, USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) announced that it had awarded $328 million for 380 wetland, grassland, and farmland conservation easements covering 129,000 acres in the first year of the Agricultural Conservation Easement Program (ACEP). At that time, NRCS did not have additional information on the types of easements that […]
FDA Analyzes Environmental Impacts of Produce Safety Rule
On February 10, 2015, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) held a public listening session on the recently released Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for the proposed Food Safety Modernization Act rule for produce safety (Produce Rule). NSAC presented comments at the session. Background on the Environmental Review Process When FDA originally issued the proposed […]
Farm and Conservation Organizations Speak Out on Conservation Program Rules
Sixty farm and conservation organizations including many NSAC member and partner organizations joined in a letter to the USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) recommending several changes to the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) to increase EQIP’s ability to improve sustainability, optimize the program’s cost-effectiveness, better serve organic farmers, and support a shift toward more […]
Release: New Free Tools Help Farmers, Ranchers Apply for Conservation Stewardship Program Before February 27 Deadline
Washington, DC February 11, 2015 – With a February 27 deadline approaching, farmers and ranchers have only two weeks left to apply to enroll in the federal Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) for 2015. The National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC) has released two free resources to help farmers and ranchers nationwide learn how the program works […]
Federal Funding Available for Minority and Veteran Farmer Outreach and Assistance
USDA has announced the availability of $9.1 million grant funding for the 2501 program to provide outreach and assistant socially disadvantaged and veteran farmers and ranchers…. Read More →
Program Roundup – Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program
Editor’s Note — This is the latest in a series of periodic blog posts on the latest happenings in each Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) regions as they roll out project solicitations and announce grant awards. The Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education or SARE program is a farmer driven research and education competitive grants […]
Attack on WOTUS Continues
In the latest congressional attack on the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) regulation of the Waters of the United States (WOTUS), the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works and the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure held a two-part joint hearing on the Impacts of the Proposed Waters of the United States Rule on State […]
Got local food? A new report highlights trends
On Thursday, January 29, the Economic Research Service (ERS) of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) released the Trends in U.S. Local and Regional Food Systems: A Report to Congress. Written at the request of Congress as part of the FY 2014 agricultural appropriations bill, the report provides an overview and analysis of the growth, […]
Local Food Grant Application Assistance Workshops
Interested in applying for federal funding to develop, improve, or expand a farmers market, community supported agriculture (CSA), other direct-to-consumer marketing outlet, or a local and regional food enterprise like a food hub, distributor, aggregator, processor, wholesaler, or shared-use kitchen? Not sure how to get your application started or feeling stuck in the application process? […]
Senate Bill Would Cap Crop Insurance Subsidies
On Tuesday February 3, Senators Shaheen and Toomey introduced legislation to cap crop insurance subsidies at $50,000 per entity. According to the Congressional Budget Office, this payment limit would save the federal government $2.2 billion over 10 years while impacting only 2.5 percent of producers. Currently, the federal government subsidizes, on average, 62 percent of […]
Plant Breeding and Food Security Research Funding Available
On Monday, February 1, USDA’s National Institute for Food and Agriculture (NIFA) released a Request for Applications (RFA) for the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative’s (AFRI) Food Security Challenge Area. The AFRI Food Security Program provides grants for research, education, and extension projects, with the long-term goal to sustainably increase agricultural productivity and the availability and accessibility […]
Got CSP Questions? We’ve Got Answers!
The deadline for farmers and ranchers to sign-up for CSP has been extended by USDA until March 13…. Read More →
Millions Invested into New Farmer Training Programs
This week, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced awards to 39 organizations that will receive federal grants to help train the next generation of farmers and ranchers. USDA Deputy Secretary Krysta Harden made the announcement at an urban aquaponics facility in New Orleans, run by one of the grant recipients. These grants were funded through […]
What Does the President’s 2016 Budget Mean for Sustainable Agriculture?
There are some positive signs in the budget request for sustainable food and agriculture priorities, but also some very major disappointments…. Read More →
Sustainable Farming in the South: NSAC Members Gather in Georgia
Earlier this week, the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC) held its bi-annual meeting on Jekyll Island in Southeastern Georgia. Representatives of NSAC’s member organizations convened to discuss and set NSAC priorities for 2015, plan grassroots actions for the year, and engage on sustainable agriculture issues with other advocates from around the country. Georgia Organics, a […]
Sign up now for the Conservation Stewardship Program for 2015
Interested in enrolling in the Conservation Stewardship Program? Submit your application by February 27…. Read More →
USDA Requests Proposals for 2015 Conservation Innovation Grants
Pre-proposals for the Conservation Innovation Grants program are due to the NRCS by February 24…. Read More →
Organic Farming… Before It Was Cool
Looking to transition to organic farming? Curious which cover crops will work in your region? Look no further than PubAg, the National Agricultural Library’s (NAL) newest search engine. This month, the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) has unveiled this free search engine tool for USDA and peer reviewed agriculture-related research publications. Their digital collection features 40,000 full-text articles from […]