In its “Path to the 2012 Farm Bill” series, NSAC gets into the details of the 2012 Farm Bill debate. On Wednesday, March 7, the Senate Agriculture Committee held the third of four hearings for the 2012 Farm Bill. Hearings are an important part in the farm bill process because they bring attention to critical […]
Beginning and Minority Farmers
Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food: USDA Releases Report and Compass
On Wednesday, February 29 USDA released its Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food (KYF2) report and introduced the Compass, an expansive new resource for the KYF2 initiative. The initiative was launched in 2009 to enhance coordination and efficiency among the various USDA agencies and programs that work to build local and regional farm and food […]
Federal Investments in Local Food Boost Economic Growth — USDA Releases Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food Report and Compass
For Immediate Release February 29, 2012 Contact: Helen Dombalis, 202-547-5754 Washington, DC, February 29, 2012 – Today USDA released a comprehensive report on its Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food initiative, launched in 2009 to enhance coordination among federal programs that in various ways help to build local and regional farm and food systems. “This […]
Path to the 2012 Farm Bill: Senate Agriculture Committee Highlights Conservation Programs
In its “Path to the 2012 Farm Bill” series, NSAC gets into the details of the 2012 Farm Bill debate. On Tuesday, February 28, the Senate Agriculture Committee held its second Farm Bill hearing of the year. The hearing, entitled “Strengthening Conservation through the 2012 Farm Bill,” brought together three farmers, representatives from three national […]
USDA Announces Website to Support Beginning Farmers and Ranchers
Yesterday, USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack announced the launch of an online tool to support beginning farmers and ranchers. Start2Farm.gov, a collaboration between USDA’s National Library and the American Farm Bureau Federation, provides information on funding, training, networking, and legal and technical assistance. The site also chronicles beginning farmer and rancher success stories. Congress has defined […]
Addressing Equity and Fairness in the 2012 Farm Bill
On February 1st and 2nd, NSAC was one of 30 farm, food security, and environmental groups that participated in a two day summit held in Washington, D.C. to exchange policy ideas about the farm bill. The primary goal of the summit was to identify specific areas of collaboration to move forward collectively in the 2012 Farm […]
Path to the 2012 Farm Bill: Senate Kicks Off Hearings
In its “Path to the 2012 Farm Bill” series, NSAC gets into the details of the 2012 Farm Bill debate. On Wednesday, February 15, the Senate Agriculture Committee held its first in a series of four hearings for the upcoming 2012 Farm Bill. Hearings are an important part in the farm bill process because they […]
Obama’s FY 2013 USDA Budget Request
On Monday, February 13, President Obama submitted his budget request to Congress for Fiscal Year (FY) 2013. For sustainable agriculture interests, the budget proposal is a mixed bag, with big cuts to working lands conservation programs, and both cuts and increases to discretionary spending accounts for sustainable agriculture programs. As far as the upcoming 2012 […]
Office of Advocacy and Outreach Launches New Website!
This week, USDA’s Office of Advocacy and Outreach launched their website located at www.outreach.usda.gov. The Office of Advocacy and Outreach (OAO) was established in the 2008 Farm Bill in order to increase access to USDA programs and to improve the viability and profitability of small farms and ranches, beginning farmers and ranchers, and socially disadvantaged farmers […]
Women and Latino Farmers Now Eligible for Larger Discrimination Claims
On January 25th, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced the Obama Administration has increased the maximum cash recovery for claims from Latino and female farmers and ranchers discriminated against when seeking USDA loans. Now, Latino and female farmers claiming discrimination in the USDA loan process between 1981 and 2000 are eligible to receive up to $250,000, […]
It’s Time: Help us Speak up for Sustainable Agriculture
Check out our Path to the 2012 Farm Bill blog series for updates on the 2012 Farm Bill process – and be sure to sign up for NSAC Action Alerts to stay in the loop on speaking out and taking action! The summer’s bounty may feel far away, but even in January, farmers and ranchers […]
If you eat and live in America
If you eat and live in America, you should be concerned about the future of farming in this country. The average age of our nation’s farmers is 57 years old, with more than a quarter of all farmers 65 or older. There are many people inspired to farm, but as recent studies show, our nation’s […]
Food and Farm Bill Alive in 2012!
Dear Supporters, We previously reported to you that a 2011 Food and Farm Bill appeared imminent. Days before Thanksgiving the Congressional “Super Committee” failed to reach agreement on $1.2 trillion in budget cuts. With that, the 2011 Farm Bill proposal intended for inclusion in the Super Committee’s deficit reduction bill is thus no more. The […]
Beginning Farmer Land Contract Program to Launch in 2012
On Thursday, December 1st, the Farm Service Agency (FSA) issued the final rule for the Land Contract Guarantee Program, which was authorized under the 2008 Farm Bill. This program was first authorized as a pilot program under the 2002 Farm Bill, but was expanded to be made permanent and offered nationwide in the last […]
The Farm Bill is Dead! Long Live the Farm Bill! – Part Two
In part one of this post, we discuss what might be next for the ongoing congressional budget debate and in turn for the new farm bill. In part two we turn to details about what was in the short-lived and now dead 2011 Farm Bill deal. What We Know About the Farm Bill that Did […]
Funding Available for Outreach to Socially Disadvantaged Farmers and Ranchers
On November 17th, USDA’s Office of Advocacy and Outreach announced a Request for Applications (RFA) for the Outreach and Assistance to Socially Disadvantaged Farmers and Ranchers Grant Program (OASDFR), also known as the “Section 2501” program. For purposes of this program, USDA defines a socially disadvantaged (SDA) farmer, rancher, or agricultural producer as someone from […]
Final FY 2012 Agriculture Funding Levels Agreed Upon
On Tuesday, November 15, House and Senate negotiators reached a compromise deal on a fiscal year (FY) 2012 appropriations “minibus” (H.R. 2112) which includes the FY 2012 agriculture appropriations bill. The minibus will now be sent back to both chambers of Congress for a final vote before being sent to the President for his signature […]
New Report Highlights Needs of Young Farmers
A new report recently released by the National Young Farmers’ Coalition reveals some of the top barriers facing young and beginning farmers in the U.S. today. Building a Future with Farmers: Challenges Faced by Young, American Farmers and a National Strategy to Help Them Succeed includes results from 1,000 young farmers across the country who were […]
Request for Applications for Socially Disadvantaged Farmers Grant Program
On November 3, USDA’s Office of Advocacy and Outreach (OAO) submitted a Request for Applications (RFA) for its Outreach and Assistance for Socially Disadvantaged Farmers and Ranchers Grant Program (OASDFR). The notice says a total of approximately $10 million for FY 2012 is available. The maximum amount of federal funding granted to eligible recipients shall […]
Senate Champions Introduce Beginning Farmer Bill
National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition For Immediate Release November 10, 2011 Contact: Ferd Hoefner, Juli Obudzinski 202-547-5754 Senate Champions Introduce Beginning Farmer Bill Washington, D.C. November 10, 2011 – Ten Senators today introduced the Beginning Farmer and Rancher Opportunity Act of 2011, a comprehensive bill intended for inclusion in the upcoming farm bill that highlights federal […]
Farm Bill Update – November 4, 2011
There was much speculation this week that the leaders of the House and Senate Agriculture Committees were close to finalizing a farm bill to send to the Super Committee today; however, no agreement has yet emerged. The chairs and ranking members of both committees had agreed in their October 14 letter to the Super Committee, […]
USDA Announces Risk Management Partnership Awards
On Friday, October 28, USDA announced $13.5 million in grants to support crop insurance education and outreach in 47 states to ensure that small and underserved producers get the information they need to effectively manage their risk and remain productive. The grants were awarded as part of the fiscal year 2011 funding cycle for two […]
“Pick Three” Action Update
Hundreds of you have called and emailed your Senators and Representatives over the last two weeks – thank you for standing up for a fair and healthy farm and food system! To remind readers of current action items, we summarized and linked three alerts below. Urgent Action Needed on the Farm Bill The food and […]
Black Farmer Settlement Approved by Court
On Thursday, October 27, 2011, a District Court Judge issued a motion to approve the settlement in the Pigford II black farmers’ class action discrimination lawsuit against the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). The settlement provides $1.25 billion for tens of thousands of black farmers who were discriminated against by USDA in the 1980s and […]