National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition

Supporting the economic and environmental sustainability of agriculture, natural resources, and rural communities.

USDA

Release: NSAC Applauds Biden-Harris Administration Releases Action Plan for Fairer Meat and Poultry Supply Chain

Today, the Biden-Harris Administration released its Action Plan for a Fairer, More Competitive, and More Resilient Meat and Poultry Supply Chain. The plan aims to address competition and fairness in the meat and poultry sector by dedicating $1 billion in American Rescue Plan funds to expand independent processing capacity…. Read More →

COVID Relief Funding NOW Available for Farmers Markets, Processors and Underserved Farmers

With farmers pulling long hours at the height of harvest season, and cases of the coronavirus skyrocketing across the country, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is now providing additional funding to help many in our food and farm supply chains who were left out of previous aid programs. As of October 6, USDA […]

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 […]

Closed out: How U.S. farmers are denied access to conservation programs

Editor’s Note: This blog post is co-authored by Cathy Day, PhD, NSAC Climate Policy Coordinator and Michael Happ, Program Associate for Climate and Rural Communities at the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, (IATP). ITAP is an NSAC member organization with a 30-year history of pursuing cutting edge solutions that benefit family farmers, rural communities and […]

Advancing Racial Justice and Equity Through the USDA

NSAC recently submitted a response to USDA’s request for comment on how the department can advance racial justice and equity for underserved communities. USDA is hoping to identify barriers that Black, Indigenous, and other BIPOC communities and individuals may face in accessing, enrolling, and participating in USDA programs and services, and engaging with USDA staff. […]

NSAC Releases Brief on Financing Options for Meat Processing Infrastructure

Editor’s Note: This blog post was co-authored by Matt Kneece, S.C. Policy Coordinator for Carolina Farm Stewardship Association, the lead drafter of NSAC’s Issue Brief on Financing Options for Local/Regional Meat Processing Infrastructure and Kelly Nuckolls, Senior Policy Specialist at NSAC. As the food system begins to recover from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, […]

Investments and Opportunities for Input on Meat and Poultry Processing Infrastructure

USDA recently announced over $600 million in future investments to support and increase processing capacity through grants, loans, and technical assistance to address concentration within the meat and poultry sectors, as well as small plant fee relief.  On July 16th, 2021 the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) published a notice in the Federal Register, seeking […]

Unpacking the House Appropriations Committee FY 2022 Agriculture Funding Bill

On June 30th, the House Appropriations Committee marked up and approved its fiscal year (FY) 2022 Agriculture Spending bill. The full House Appropriations Committee markup and approval followed the Agriculture Subcommittee’s approval of the funding bill on Friday, June 12. The agriculture appropriations bill includes funding for a wide range of farm and food programs, […]

UPDATE: EXTENSION ON USDA REQUEST FOR COMMENT ON RACIAL JUSTICE AND EQUITY

USDA is requesting input from the public on how it can advance racial justice and equity for underserved communities as part of its implementation of Executive Order 13985, “Identifying Barriers in USDA Programs and Services; Advancing Racial Justice and Equity and Support for Underserved Communities at USDA.” USDA is hoping to identify barriers that Black, […]

RELEASE: NSAC Applauds USDA Announcement of $500 Million for Expanded Meat and Poultry Processing Capacity

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Laura Zaks, National Sustainable Agriculture Coalitionpress@sustainableagriculture.net RELEASE: NSAC Applauds USDA Announcement of $500 Million for Expanded Meat and Poultry Processing Capacity Washington, DC, July 9, 2021 – Today the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC) applauds the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) announcement of $500 million in additional funding to bolster small- and […]

New Pandemic Cover Crop Program is a First Step

Last week, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced a new Pandemic Cover Crop Program (PCCP), which will offer a $5 per acre premium discount to producers who planted qualifying cover crops during the 2021 crop year and enrolled in eligible federal crop insurance policies. The PCCP is administered by the Risk Management Agency […]

Farmers Virtually Visit the Hill to Advocate for Climate Action

What do you get when you mix a pandemic context, a carbon-conscious group of farmers and advocates, and a critical window for Congressional action on the climate crisis? The National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC)’s latest Virtual Farmer “Fly-In” on Climate and Agriculture. Bringing farmers to Washington, D.C. to tell their stories to their lawmakers and […]

$15 Million Available for Conservation Innovation Grants

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) recently announced the availability of $15 million for the Conservation Innovation Grants (CIG) program. This funding is in addition to the $25 million in funding that was previously announced for on-farm trials (a CIG sub-program established under the 2018 Farm Bill). This funding announcement […]