Introduction Black farm cooperatives hold a unique role within the food sovereignty movement and cooperative organization history. Last month, NSAC facilitated a virtual panel alongside the Cooperative Food Empowerment Directive (CoFED) to celebrate the accomplishments, history, and challenges of Black farm cooperatives in the United States. The webinar featured experts in cooperative development and history, […]
General Interest
RELEASE: NRCS Releases EQIP Final Rule
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Eric Deeble, Policy DirectorNational Sustainable Agriculture Coalitionedeeble@sustainableagriculture.net NRCS Releases EQIP Final Rule Rule affirms soil health as national priority to address climate change but misses the opportunity to support small-scale sustainable producers Washington, DC, October 23rd, 2020 – Today, the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) released its final rule for the Environmental Quality […]
USDA Awards $27 million to Support Local Food Projects
Local food systems and direct-to-consumer marketing through farmers markets, farm stands, and Community Supported Agriculture (CSAs) programs have flourished across the country over the past several decades. Once viewed as a fad or niche part of the food sector, local food systems and direct marketing agriculture are now an integral part of American agriculture and […]
RELEASE: CSP RULE FAILS FARMERS AND ENVIRONMENT
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEContact: Eric Deeble, Policy Specialist National Sustainable Agriculture Coalitionedeeble@sustainableagriculture.net CSP Rule Fails Farmers and Environment Trump Administration’s First Farm Bill Conservation Final Rule Flouts the Law Washington, DC, October 9th, 2020 – The Trump Administration published its first 2018 Farm Bill conservation title program final rule in today’s Federal Register. The Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) […]
Bare Minimum, Last Minute
Last Wednesday night with only a few hours to spare, Congress did what many observers and advocates for months had been citing as inevitable. They sent an appropriations Continuing Resolution (CR) to the President’s desk that puts off final decisions about Fiscal Year (FY) 2021 spending until after the November general election. The CR ensures […]
Analyzing Food Safety Outreach Program Awards Through an Equity Lens
Since 2015, the Food Safety Outreach Program (FSOP) has provided small and mid-sized farms, beginning and socially disadvantaged farmers, small processors, and small-scale wholesalers with the training they need to comply with new food safety requirements included in the 2011 Food Safety Modernization Act. To reach the aforementioned audiences, the program has largely focused on […]
RELEASE: The Strengthening Local Processing Act Addresses Critical Livestock and Poultry Supply Chain Issues
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEContact: Kelly Nuckolls, Policy Specialist National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition knuckolls@sustainableagriculture.net RELEASE: The Strengthening Local Processing Act Addresses Critical Livestock and Poultry Supply Chain Issues The National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC) Applauds Representatives Chellie Pingree (D-ME) and Jeff Fortenberry (R-NE) for introducing a comprehensive bill to support small processing plants. Washington, DC, September 29th, […]
RMA Releases Updates to the Whole Farm Revenue Protection Program
On August 20, 2020, the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation (FCIC) approved new updates to the Whole Farm Revenue Protection (WFRP) program. WFRP is a unique crop-neutral revenue insurance product available for diversified farming operations. Unlike traditional yield or revenue insurance, this product is not intended for a single specific crop, but for all the crops […]
COMMENT: New USDA Coronavirus Aid Offers Partial Improvement for Producers
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Eric Deeble, Policy DirectorNational Sustainable Agriculture Coalitionedeeble@sustainableagriculture.net COMMENT: New USDA Coronavirus Aid Offers Partial Improvement for ProducersUSDA’s CFAP 2 Will Help More Producers but Misses the Mark in Key Areas Washington, DC, September 18, 2020 – Today, The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) released details of a new version of […]
New Urban Agriculture County Committee Accepting Nominations
One of the historic elements of the 2018 Farm Bill was the inclusion of dedicated resources and programs for urban agriculture, for the first time. Urban agriculture gives city residents a chance to purchase healthy foods from farmers not just in their state, but sometimes right in their very own neighborhoods. Urban farms can also […]
Big 2020 Signup Numbers For CRP Grasslands
In July 2020, the Farm Service Agency (FSA) announced that it accepted around 1.2 million new acres into the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) Grasslands initiative. These acres were accepted from applications submitted between March 16 and May 15, 2020. While other variations of CRP support conservation by removing land from cultivation for extended periods of […]
Thousands of Farmers Sign Congressional Call to Action on the Climate Crisis
Every farmer stands on the frontlines of the climate crisis. Last year, farmers and ranchers within the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC) network mobilized to make certain that policymakers understood their concerns and desires to meet the climate crisis head-on. NSAC members worked with farmers and ranchers to draft a letter that lifts up farmer […]
RELEASE: The Local and Regional Farmer and Market Support Act Would Deliver Critical Pandemic Aid for Farmers, Ranchers, and Local Food Businesses
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEContact: Eric DeebleNational Sustainable Agriculture Coalition The Local and Regional Farmer and Market Support Act Would Deliver Critical Pandemic Aid for Farmers, Ranchers, and Local Food Businesses Representative Alma Adams (D-NC-12) Introduces Comprehensive Bill to Provide Direct Aid to Farmers and Local Markets Feeding Families Amidst the Pandemic Washington, DC, August 26, 2020 […]
The Senate is Negotiating Pandemic Aid: What Does it Mean for Farmers and Food Systems?
On Monday, July 27, 2020, Senator Mitch McConnell (R-KY) introduced the highly anticipated HEALS Act. This $1 trillion bill is the Senate Majority proposal for the fourth coronavirus response package (C4), which will serve as the starting point for Senate negotiations. In this post we will examine the farm and food systems provisions of the […]
Guest Post: Farmers Markets Are Essential—And So Are the Policy Relationships They Hold
Editor’s Note: We want to thank Ben Feldman, Stephanie Fenty, and Hannah Fuller of the Farmers Market Coalition for this guest post on the challenges that farmers markets face in light of the persistent pandemic and in celebration of National Farmers’ Market Week, observed August 2nd through August 8th. No matter how you look at […]
Changes to the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program and Likely More to Come
Anyone who has been near a computer or television during the past week is certainly aware of the chaotic negotiations in the Senate as Majority leadership works to craft their version of a fourth coronavirus pandemic response bill (C4). The House passed their $3 trillion HEROES Act (C4) more than two months ago (May 15, […]
Latest Round of Farm to School Grants Tops $12 million as Pandemic Uncertainty Persists
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced $12.1 million in Farm to School Grants to 159 grantees in 48 states, Guam and Washington D.C. This is the largest round of awards since the grant program was first authorized and is a most welcome against the backdrop of uncertainty caused by lost markets and the possibility […]
USDA Programs Support Small Meat Processing Plants
There are a few existing federal programs that could be expanded to further support small, local, and regional meat and poultry processing plants and increase farmers’ access to slaughter and processing options…. Read More →
NSAC Adopts Updated Principles on Immigration and Agriculture
Introduction Immigrant communities have played a crucial role in the cultural, economic, and political growth of our country. The farm and dairy economy especially depend on labor from migrant and immigrant people, often labor from undocumented people, who often live in precarious situations and receive little compensation or benefits. As recent headlines have shown, both […]
Is There Help from Congress on the Horizon?
The Food Supply Protection Act Americans continue to grapple with the ongoing coronavirus pandemic and can now see its impacts on every aspect of their own lives and on the lives of others in their community. An uncoordinated and inconsistent federal response to the pandemic has caused great harm to the most vulnerable among us […]
USDA Food Box Program Falls Short of Supporting Small Farms
In late April, Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced the highly anticipated Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP), a two pronged plan the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) would implement to distribute $23.5 billion in Congressionally provided aid to farmers impacted by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. CFAP consists of two distinct programs: $16 billion in direct […]
There is No Future for Sustainable Food and Farming Without Racial Justice
Last month, the world witnessed yet another killing of a Black person in America at the hands of police. The National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition grieves the murder of George Floyd and stands with those calling for justice for Mr. Floyd, for Ahmaud Arbery, for Tony McDade, for David McAtee, for Breonna Taylor, and for every […]
New Hub of Activity for Good Food Policy
In May, as the country grappled with an emerging global pandemic and unprecedented demand for food assistance, a national collaboration of organizations working on food systems and healthy food access officially launched the Nutrition Incentive Hub. Funded through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the National Institute for Food and […]
Inaugural Urban Agriculture and Community Compost Funding Opportunities Announced
Americans’ interest in knowing more about where, how, and by whom their food is produced has been growing for many years and the coronavirus pandemic has shown new light on the serious shortcomings in our highly concentrated food production system. Along with the rise of the local food movement there has also been a building […]