For Immediate Release Contact: Laura Zaks National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC) press@sustainableagriculture.net / Tel: 347.563.6408 Release: NSAC Congratulates Senate on Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 Passage, Urges Swift House Action Funding Prioritizes Climate Solutions for Agriculture and Includes Key Coalition Priorities Washington, DC, August 7, 2022 – Today the full Senate passed the Inflation Reduction […]
Farm Bill
Release: NSAC Urges Congress to Pass Historic Climate Package
Yesterday, after months of on-and-off negotiations, Senate leaders announced a proposed deal on legislation aimed at advancing key pieces of President Biden’s agenda, including measures to combat climate change. If passed, the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 would, among other things, provide approximately $369.75 billion for energy security and climate change programs over the next ten years…. Read More →
Release: National Farmer Climate Story Week Showcases Climate Solutions
This week, across the country, advocates for sustainable agriculture are joining together in a week of action to highlight the impacts that farmers increasingly face from climate change and the solutions needed to mitigate and adapt their practices to build greater resiliency and to bolster the food system. The week of action also builds support for the Agriculture Resilience Act (ARA), a comprehensive set of policy changes that would steer agriculture in the US towards net-zero carbon emissions by 2040 and serves as an important roadmap for how the next farm bill can effectively address climate change. … Read More →
Digging into the 2023 Farm Bill: Senate Hearings Kick-Off the Long Road to the 2023 Farm Bill
NSAC details the recent Senate Agriculture Committee field hearing as a first step as part of the upcoming 2023 Farm Bill reauthorization process. This is the first post in a multi-part series taking a deeper look into the 2023 Farm Bill process…. Read More →
RELEASE: New NSAC Report Projects Billions Saved Via Crop Insurance Subsidy Caps
The National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC) published a special report projecting billions in taxpayer savings over 10 years if payment caps are instituted on federal subsidies paid to farmers who purchase crop insurance. … Read More →
CLEAR30 Sign-Up Open Now!
On April 1, the USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA) opened enrollment for the Conservation Reserve Program’s (CRP) CLEAR30 subprogram – an important component of the larger Continuous Conservation Reserve Program. With both programs taking applications, NSAC offers a quick review of how these essential conservation tools function and shares key information for producers interested in applying…. Read More →
Agricultural Conservation Easement Program: Between Farm Bills
The Agricultural Conservation Easement Program (ACEP) was created in the 2014 Farm Bill through the combination of the Wetlands Reserve Program (WRE), the Grassland Reserve Program, and the Farm and Ranch Lands Protection Program. The program is administered through Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS,) and is divided into two tracks: a wetland easement component and an agricultural land easement (ALE) component. The 2018 Farm Bill gave ACEP a major increase in annual funding – adding $200 million per year as compared to levels under the 2014 Farm Bill. The 2018 Farm Bill also added new provisions to prioritize projects that maintain farm viability and land affordability. … Read More →
CRP Signup: Scraping the Bottom of the Barrel
For more than 35 years, the Farm Bill’s Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) has paid farmers and landowners to take highly erodible and other environmentally sensitive lands out of crop production and enroll them in conserving practices instead. Through CRP, USDA pays farmers to set aside land for grass or tree cover for a period of 10 or 15 years. This May, the Farm Service Agency announced that it had accepted over 2 million new acres into the FY22 CRP General Signup. This included more than 1.75 million re-enrolled acres, over 85% of the total accepted…. Read More →
PLANS TO BOOST COMMODITY PRODUCTION A HOUSE OF CARDS
Recent executive actions and proposals in Congress to boost commodity production will only perpetuate a failing food and farming system…. Read More →
Whole-Farm Revenue Protection Analysis: A Few Bad Apples
Due to complicated rules, farmer skepticism, and insurance agent disinterest, the Whole-Farm Revenue Protection (WFRP) program is not performing near its optimal potential. … Read More →
THE FUTURE OF CONSERVATION AND THE GRAZING REVOLUTION: FARMERS AND RANCHERS ASK CONGRESS TO FUND THE GRAZING LANDS CONSERVATION INITIATIVE (GLCI)
Graziers, or producers who utilize systematic grazing management in raising livestock, are making the case for the widespread adoption of pasture based practices that demonstrate synchronous benefits for both local food systems and ecosystems. The Grazing Lands Conservation Initiative (GLCI) enters the landscape provides local and regional resources for farmers and ranchers – both established and beginning – who are interested in understanding and utilizing grazing management practices…. Read More →
Release: NSAC Publishes Newly Revised Growing Opportunity Guide
NSAC published a brand new, fully updated Growing Opportunity: A Guide to USDA Sustainable Farming Programs. This free, comprehensive, practical guide is for farmers and ranchers who want to better understand which key federal programs offered by USDA can help them meet their needs and support their diversified, sustainable farming operations…. Read More →
THIS MUST BE THE PLACE: NSAC’S WINTER MEETING CENTERS RELATIONSHIP BUILDING, POLICY PRIORITIES
Every year, NSAC comes together to set policy priorities based on needs identified by members and informed by the work of issue committees to firmly establish the Coalition’s positions and “asks” on issues. … Read More →
Everything You Wanted to Know About Budget Reconciliation
Editors Note: At the time of publication, the anticipated conservation and debt relief provisions were not yet publicly available, they have since been released to the public, for analysis on those previously missing pieces, check out our subsequent post “Budget Reconciliation: The Missing Pieces”. At this point if you are paying attention to the news […]
The Case for Next Generation Crop Insurance
Recently, the AGree Economic and Environmental Risk Coalition (AGree E2 Coalition) released a new paper: The Case for Next Generation Crop Insurance. The comprehensive paper reviews mounting scientific evidence for the risk reduction benefits of agricultural conservation practices as well as policy barriers to broad adoption, before proposing recommendations to bring the federal crop insurance […]
The Time is Ripe for Competition and Antitrust Reform in Agriculture
This is the first of several blogs which will explore the impacts of consolidation and concentration in the agriculture industry on farmers and the broader food system, as well as a path forward. The blog series is authored by NSAC Policy Associate Billy Hackett with meaningful contributions by farmers and experts. Read the second entry […]
Guest Post: Climbers and Farm Policy
Like it or not, the laws and policies we enact at the state, local, and federal level all play a critical role in shaping our food and farming system. The climbing and outdoor community has an important role to play in being advocates for the land that sustains us…. Read More →
$50 Million Available for Regional Conservation Partnership Program AFA
The Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) has helped conserve thousands of acres of land across the United States. This program focuses on protecting watersheds by promoting soil health, well-managed working farmland, and general good conservation practices. In order to apply for RCPP’s Alternative Funding Arrangements (AFAs) for Fiscal Year (FY) 2020, applications should be submitted […]
From the Farm to the Hill: NSAC Hosts FY 2020 Farmer Fly-in
Last week, the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC) brought in over a dozen farmers and advocates for the Coalition’s second “farmer fly-in” of 2019. Fly-in advocates from ten different states across the country came to DC to champion the federal programs important to them and their communities before congressional appropriators. Currently, Congress is negotiating federal […]
USDA Listening Sessions Offer Opportunities for Stakeholder Engagement in Farm Bill Implementation
In an effort to engage farmers and other stakeholders in the implementation process for the 2018 Farm Bill, this week the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) launched the first of many formal listening sessions to gather public input. On Tuesday, USDA’s Farm Production and Conservation (FPAC) Mission Area held a formal listening session at the […]
Congressional Hearings Kick Off Farm Bill Implementation Phase
This week, Congress started a new chapter in the 2018 Farm Bill process: oversight of the Department’s implementation efforts. The passage and signing of the new farm bill at the end of last year marked the conclusion of the bill’s “authorization phase,” and now that the fiscal year (FY) 2019 appropriations bill is finally in […]
A Closer Look at the 2018 Farm Bill: Farming Opportunities Training and Outreach Program
Editor’s Note: This is the final post in a multi-part blog series digging deeper into some of the new programs and policies of the 2018 Farm Bill. These posts detail how the new farm bill is likely to impact core sustainable agriculture programs administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Previous posts focused on: working lands conservation, local and regional food systems, and nutrition incentive and anti-hunger programs. […]
NSAC Members Convene to Set 2019 Priorities
Last week, the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC)’s annual winter meeting convened over 80 coalition members from all across the country to discuss food and agriculture policy in the nation’s capital. At the four-day convening, participants selected and made plans around NSAC coalition priorities, including implementation of the 2018 Farm Bill, which was signed into […]
A Closer Look at the 2018 Farm Bill: Gus Schumacher Nutrition Incentive Program
Editor’s Note: This is the third post in a multi-part blog series digging deeper into some of the programs and policies of the 2018 Farm Bill. These posts will detail how the new farm bill is likely to impact core sustainable agriculture programs administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Previous posts focused on: working lands conservation and local/regional food programs. Our final post of […]