The deeply problematic proposals of the President’s fiscal year (FY) 2019 budget, released on Monday of this week, include devastating cuts to critical farm and food programs. The budget, if enacted, would reduce the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) budget by a whopping 25 percent, from $24 billion to $18 billion. In addition to cutting […]
Beginning and Minority Farmers
Racial Equity in the Farm Bill: Recommendations and Opportunities
Editor’s Note: This blog post is the third and final post in a three-part blog series by NSAC Policy Intern Noah McDonald, which examines how the Farm Bill can take steps to advance racial equity within the food system. The first post discussed the historical context and foundations for racial inequities with the food system. […]
Welcome Back Congress: New Year, Long To-Do List
Less than two weeks into the new year, and Congress already has an incredibly full plate. Both the House and Senate return to work this week (the Senate has officially been back since last week), and will need to immediately dig in their massive to-do lists, not least of which include finalizing fiscal year (FY) […]
RFA Roundup: Funding Opportunities in the New Year
The New Year may have just started, but there are already many federal funding opportunities available for eligible farmers, ranchers, non-profits, and universities. Several of these opportunities opened last year and have rapidly approaching deadlines. Others have been more recently posted, and you may have missed the Request for Application (RFA) announcement during the end-of-year […]
Racial Equity in the Farm Bill: Barriers for Farmers of Color
Editor’s Note: This blog post is the second in a multi-part series by NSAC Policy Intern Noah McDonald that explores how the next Farm Bill can advance racial equity in food and agriculture. The first post in this series focused on the historical context of racial equity and the farm bill and highlighted some […]
Racial Equity in the Farm Bill: Context and Foundations
Editor’s Note: This blog post is the first in a multi-part series written and curated by NSAC Policy Intern Noah McDonald, which explores how the next Farm Bill can advance racial equity in food and agriculture. This first post explores some of the historical context for the racial inequities within our food system, federal efforts […]
Beginning Farmers Make Strides with Support from Federal Programs
As the average age of our nation’s farmers and ranchers continues to rise, ushering in the next generation of American producers has become a national priority. Congress recognized the potential crises this lack of production capacity could cause nearly a decade ago, and responded by creating the first ever federal program aimed exclusively at training […]
Funding Available to Help Train the Next Generation of Farmers
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) recently announced the availability of $22 million in grant funds to help launch new and expand existing programs to train beginning farmers, including a new initiative to train military veterans. These federal grants will be awarded through two competitive programs administered by USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture […]
Farmers Answer the “Call to Farms”
Last week, farmers from across the nation descended upon Washington, DC for NSAC’s first 2018 Farm Bill “fly-in”. NSAC’s farmer fly-ins provide farmers and farm/food advocates with the opportunity to speak with directly with decision makers in Congress about the issues that most affect their lives, businesses, and communities. On November 8th, NSAC held our […]
Path to the 2018 Farm Bill: Beginning and Socially Disadvantaged Farmers
Editor’s Note: On October 24, the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC) released its 2018 Farm Bill policy platform, An Agenda for the 2018 Farm Bill, which provides a comprehensive vision for a more sustainable farm and food system based on the recommendations and experience of American family farmers and the organizations that represent them. This is the second […]
RELEASE: By Focusing on Beginning Farmers, Legislators Are Crafting a Farm Bill for the Future
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Reana Kovalcik National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition 202-547-5754, rkovalcik@sustainableagriculture.net By Focusing on Beginning Farmers, Legislators Are Crafting a Farm Bill for the Future Washington, DC, November 8, 2017 – Today, a bipartisan coalition led by Representatives Tim Walz (D-MN) and Jeff Fortenberry (R-NE) introduced the Beginning Farmer and Rancher Opportunity Act (BFROA) of […]
RELEASE: Farmers Take the Fight for the Farm Bill to the Capitol
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Reana Kovalcik, 202-547-5754 rkovalcik@sustainableagriculture.net Farmers Take The Fight for the Farm Bill to the Capitol National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition leads farmer/advocate fly-in in advance of 2018 Farm Bill Washington, D.C., November 8, 2017 – This week, 20 farmers and farm advocates representing 13 agricultural states flew into Washington D.C. as part […]
Path to the 2018 Farm Bill: A Comprehensive Approach to Food and Farm Policy
Editor’s Note: On October 24, the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC) released its 2018 Farm Bill policy platform, An Agenda for the 2018 Farm Bill. NSAC has been a leader in agricultural policy for over 30 years, and has been instrumental in helping to develop some of our nation’s most successful agricultural programs for conserving […]
RELEASE: National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition Releases 2018 Farm Bill Platform
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Reana Kovalcik National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition 202-547-5754, rkovalcik@sustainableagriculture.net National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition Releases 2018 Farm Bill Platform Washington, DC, October 24, 2017 – Today, the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC) released its comprehensive 2018 Farm Bill policy platform, An Agenda for the 2018 Farm Bill. NSAC has been a leader in […]
RELEASE: Investments in Beginning Farmer Training Are Paying Off
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Reana Kovalcik National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition 202-547-5754, rkovalcik@sustainableagriculture.net Investments in Beginning Farmer Training Are Paying Off New Report from the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition Analyzes Impact of BFRDP Washington, DC, October 19, 2017 – Today, the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC) released findings from the first-ever comprehensive evaluation of the U.S. […]
Land Tenure Provision Provides Opportunities for Current and Future Farmers
For producers enrolled in the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Land Tenure Provision provides an opportunity to bring land back into production and give a hand up to the next generation. The Land Tenure Provision, which is only available for the least environmentally sensitive CRP acres, incentivizes producers to transfer (by […]
Clock Ticking On FY 2018 Appropriations
The end of the fiscal year (September 30) has come and gone, and with fiscal year (FY) 2017 funding levels extended through December 8, the time Congress has to negotiate final spending levels for FY 2018 is quickly running out. There is a lot on the line in this appropriations package for farmers and consumers […]
Say Cheese! NSAC Hosts 2017 Summer Meeting in Madison, WI
This summer, farm and food advocates have more on their minds than just vacation planning and sweet corn picking. Even though the current farm bill doesn’t expire until next September, the content of the 2018 Farm Bill is already being debated in the halls of Congress, on the farm, and in homes across the country. […]
Senate Agriculture Committee Tackles Farm Bill Heavy Hitters: Commodities, Credit, and Crop Insurance
Yesterday, Senate Agriculture Committee hunkered down for an epic farm bill hearing, during which 17 witnesses gave testimony on three of the bill’s most significant titles – the Commodity Title (Title I), Credit Title (Title V), and Risk Management Title (Title XI). Witnesses at the hearing included representatives from commodity groups, banks, general farm organizations, […]
Senate Appropriators Prioritize Sustainable Agriculture and Rural Development
Following closely on the heels of the House Agriculture Appropriation Subcommittee’s funding bill, which was approved by the full House Appropriations Committee last week, the Senate Appropriations Committee has advanced its agriculture appropriations funding measure for fiscal year (FY) 2018. The Senate bill moved quickly through the Subcommittee and full Committee approval process, with just […]
The Numbers Behind the Farm Bill: A Little-Known Factor for the Fate of Sustainable Ag Programs
Editor’s Note: This is the third of a four-part series explaining the background budget information that will be used to craft the upcoming 2018 Farm Bill. In this post we look in more detail at the smaller, more innovative programs that receive direct farm bill funding but will need to have their funding renewed in […]
House Makes Improvements, but Agriculture Appropriations Bill Still a Work in Progress
On July 12, 2017, the House Appropriations Committee advanced their agriculture appropriations funding measure for fiscal year (FY) 2018, which was drafted originally by the House Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee. This appropriations bill funds the major programs and functions of the US Department of Agriculture (USDA), the Commodity Future Trading Commission (CFTC), and the Food and […]
RFA Roundup: Deadline Reminders and New Funding Opportunities
Many program application deadlines are quickly approaching, so if you are a farmer, rancher, non-profit organization, university or other eligible entity and are interested in securing some federal support, make sure you get your application in on time! As part of our ongoing efforts to help farmers and advocates stay up to date with federal […]
House Appropriations Bill Largely Rejects President’s Proposed Cuts to Agriculture Programs
“Dead on arrival” is what many in Congress called the President’s fiscal year (FY) 2018 budget request – which included a discretionary funding cut of 21 percent ($47 billion over 10 years) to the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) – when it was released earlier this year. This week’s FY 2018 funding bill from the House […]