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This week, farmers, consumers, and advocates across the country are making calls to Congress with a central message: pass a farm bill for all farmers that centers conservation, not consolidation. Farm bill negotiations may be heating up once again after a standstill that has left members of Congress divided about what to prioritize. Now is the time to act. 

This week is the Farm Bill for All Farmers Week of Action: Conservation Not Consolidation. 

Farm safety net subsidies reward an industrial farming model that contributes to climate change, soil erosion, and farmland consolidation in agriculture. Increasing commodity subsidies to benefit a few farmers at the expense of popular nutrition and conservation programs would be an expensive investment that exacerbates these problems. 

Make your voice heard! Tell Congress our tax dollars should fund programs that keep families fed and fund proven conservation programs that build resilient food systems – instead of giveaways that exclude most farmers and fuel farmland consolidation.

We’ve made calling and emailing your lawmakers as easy as possible. Tailored call scripts and automated email templates are provided, and you will be connected only when you are ready. 

Click here to take action!

It’s possible that an expensive proposal in farm bill negotiations on Capitol Hill could be funded by cuts to other farm bill programs – namely, cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and cuts to money allocated to climate-smart farming practices and conservation programs through the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). 

The proposal aims to raise commodity program subsidies by anywhere from $20 to $50 billion. The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) commodity programs include the Price Loss Coverage (PLC) program, which makes payments to farmers when the average market value of a commodity (such as corn, soybeans, cotton, and peanuts, but excluding fruits and vegetables) falls below a price floor, or “reference price,” that is set in the farm bill. Despite its enormous price tag, increasing PLC reference prices to reflect recent peaks in the commodity market could primarily benefit as few as 6,000 farmers or 0.3 percent of farms.

NSAC believes that a robust, subsidized safety net is an important tool to keep farmers farming amidst unforeseeable market shocks or when disaster strikes. However, the current farm safety net – which includes federal crop insurance, commodity programs, and disaster assistance – falls short of meeting the needs of the diversity of American agriculture and contributes to resource concentration that primarily benefits relatively few farms in a handful of states with the most acres planted to row crops. 

This drives structural unsustainability at the heart of the U.S. food system because these subsidies incentivize risky forms of commodity production – systems based on annual monoculture crops, overly reliant on off-farm chemical inputs, and which chronically overuse tillage. This style of commodity production contributes to soil erosion and worsening climate change. The concentration of resources in the hands of industrial farms also contributed to the alarming loss of 145,000 farmers and the trend toward farmland consolidation revealed in the 2022 Census of Agriculture. 

Instead of providing more money to cover the cost when this small group of large commodity farms loses crops to droughts and floods, this farm bill needs to invest in helping all farmers build resilience into the landscape of their operations. The farm bill must protect historic investments in conservation programs that include incentives to adopt climate-friendly practices, many of which improve a farm’s ability to endure all manner of natural disasters. Instead of promoting dependence on federal subsidies that externalize risk onto taxpayers, the adoption of conservation practices and diversification can stop losses before they happen and improve farmers’ bottom lines. 

USDA conservation programs are very popular among farmers and ranchers nationwide, but they are oversubscribed and underfunded. In 2020 and 2022, roughly three out of every four farmers who applied to the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) and Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) were turned away due to a lack of funding. Even with IRA funds available beginning in Fiscal Year 2023, new reporting shows this trend has continued. Since conservation practices are a vital bulwark against climate change for farmers and ranchers, more funding to help farmers adopt risk-reducing conservation practices helps keep more farms on the landscape and more small businesses in rural America. That is one of the many reasons it is so important to protect historic investments in climate-smart conservation from any cuts. 

Read NSAC’s report to learn more, Unsustainable: State of the Farm Safety Net. 

The post Take Action: This Farm Bill Should Center Conservation, Not Consolidation  appeared first on National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition.

On March 19, Senator Jack Reed, a Democrat from Rhode Island, led the introduction of the EAT Local Foods Act of 2024 alongside twelve co-sponsors and with 184 endorsements from organizations, farms, and businesses from across the country. The bill seeks to sustain the US Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Local Food Purchase Assistance (LFPA) program, which launched in 2021 as one of USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service’s (AMS) initiatives to transform the food system and build resilient regional supply chains.

“If the program continues beyond 2025, I think that local farmers and local processors will grow into a stronger network. Plus, the people that are benefitting from Ohio CAN (Community + Agriculture + Nutrition) and LFPA will continue to have access to the  local food they need for themselves, as a business and for the people that are eating it,” said Jeremy Manalo, on behalf of King’s Poultry Farm in Ohio. 

“From the perspective of a small processor like myself, we often miss out on programs that might favor the large meat and poultry operations because we’re not doing hundreds of thousands of animals in a given week or month. LFPA has found a way to put our workers to work and feed local people local food,” added Manalo.

LFPA strategically leverages $900 million in funding for domestic food purchases to invest in local food systems and partnerships, address food insecurity, and create economic opportunities for local and underserved producers. Since LFPA is structured as cooperative agreements with states, Tribal governments, and territories, it centers local voices and enables states to be dynamic and responsive to the unique needs of their rural and urban communities. LFPA is unique from other federal food purchasing programs because food purchases are often paired with scale-appropriate technical assistance from community partners that generate benefits beyond increased farm revenue. Already, this model has proven incredibly popular: USDA has entered into agreements with 81 cooperators, including all 50 states, 28 Tribal nations, and 3 territories.

NSAC members across the nation have been active in program development, implementation, and monitoring. Last year, the Wallace Center, an NSAC member, released a report highlighting the results of initial research into LFPA that identified effective models, partner best practices, and preliminary success stories. 

More recently, NSAC staff interviewed technical assistance providers, food hubs, farmers, processors, and others  to understand the personal impact of the LFPA program.

For example, in Arizona, LFPA funds are managed by two primary partners – Pinnacle Prevention, an NSAC member, and the Arizona Food Bank Network. The Food Bank Network’s “Friends of the Farm”’ program is focused on getting more local foods into existing food pantry programs. Pinnacle Prevention’s “Purchase Local Arizona” program is catalyzing new relationships between growers and markets. To date, $2.4 million has been spent on local produce, meat, and eggs from 227 Arizona producers, farmers, and ranchers from almost every county in the state. This food has reached 110 diverse nonprofit and community-based organizations. One of Pinnacle Prevention’s programs recently connected a farmer to a student dormitory where staff benefit from food purchased by LFPA funds. It exposes participants to new crops, while also providing culturally relevant foods, many of which spark memories and stories among participants. 

“It reminded me of how my ancestors practiced their healthier lifestyle and the goodness it brought to their home,” shared one staff member. 

“The Hubbard squash reminds me of my grandmother; my grandmother used to have a big farm where they grew corn mainly but some squash and sunflowers,” said another staff member.

State agencies across the country have supported a diverse range of farmers, including those growing specialty crops and grains; producing meat, poultry, dairy, and eggs; and fishing along our coasts. The result is millions of dollars reaching small and midsize farmers nationwide. To date, $104 million has been spent strengthening local and regional markets, including the following investments: 

• $9,000,000 in OhioCAN distributed among 164 growers. 
• $2,000,000 in Iowa distributed among 234 producers.
• $2,400,000 in Arizona distributed among 227 producers.
• $1,400,000 in Michigan distributed among 119 farmers and 10 farmer cooperatives. 
• $1,400,000 spent with New Mexico farmers and ranchers.
• $1,000,000 in Virginia distributed among 84 farmers. 
• $500,000 in Maryland distributed among 30 watermen.
• $480,000 in Rhode Island from 93 farmers and fishers.

This is a pivotal moment in AMS commodity program spending, with funding making its way directly to thousands of unique small and mid-scale growers, and more than half of those dollars have been spent with underserved producers. This program provides fresh and healthy food to low-income families but also acts as a farm viability and economic development tool. Although the Farmers to Families Food Box Program initially supported a diverse range of farms, the competitive bidding nature of the program inevitably resulted in it supporting fewer and larger operations. 

The Expanding Access to Local Foods Act of 2024 (S. 3982) would create a permanent local food purchasing program largely modeled off of LFPA. The bill would direct USDA to enter into cooperative agreements with States, Tribes, and territories to purchase food from local, regional, and underserved producers to distribute to community organizations. 

The program design would allow flexibility for units of government to directly purchase these foods or sub-award the funding to partners in the region. Food purchases must be local and at least 51 percent of the total value of products purchased shall be from small, beginning, or underserved producers. Moreover, food distribution will remain intended for food insecure communities. 

The bill offers some programmatic improvements by: 

• creating a funding set-aside for Tribal nations so that they do not have to compete directly with states, 
• directing a portion of the funding to support technical assistance and food safety training to increase participation for growers who have not previously participated due to financial barriers, and
• easing pressure on smaller operations by making 50% of the funding available at the time the agreement is signed, rather than administering it entirely on a reimbursement process.

The bill includes mandatory funding ($200 million) and discretionary funding authorized through appropriations ($200 million). 

Although thousands of producers and hundreds of thousands of families are intimately aware of LFPA programs operating in their communities, LFPA is largely still considered a new initiative with some states making their first food purchases as recently as last year. As a result, the success of this program is not widely known on Capitol Hill. NSAC and the Wallace Center are actively working to increase awareness of the program and its social and economic benefits. 

NSAC hosted a virtual congressional briefing on March 20 to provide a platform for farmers, food hubs, and administrators to share their personal stories in the program. The briefing included the following panelists: 

• Jeremy Manalo, Kings Poultry Farm, Ohio
• Thanh Tran, OKC Food Hub, Oklahoma
• Chris Ford, River Bend Food Bank, Iowa
• Mary Greene-Trottier, Spirit Lake Sioux Tribe, North Dakota 

The briefing also offered an opportunity for the Wallace Center to highlight their recently published state spotlights. 

Iowa LFPA: Together We Grow, Together We Thrive describes the unique partnership between the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship, Iowa Valley Resource Conservation & Development, and the tribal government of the Meskwaki Nation to ensure that all of Iowa’s farmers continue to grow and thrive.

New Mexico LFPA: Building a Local Food System on Efficiency, Trust, and NM Values demonstrates how food systems leaders are working collaboratively to expand market opportunities for socially disadvantaged producers and increase values-based procurement that facilitates positive social impact.

“The Wallace Center is privileged to have a national vantage point on the Local Food Purchase Assistance program and it’s been incredible to witness the creativity and innovation happening in states and tribal communities across the country,” said Susan Lightfoot Schempf, Co-Director, Wallace Center.

“In the short time since its inception, LFPA has demonstrated its potential as a powerful investment in farms and communities. It shows that the federal government can use its significant purchasing power to catalyze new market opportunities for farmers, build new relationships across the value chain, and increase the impact of its other investments in local and regional food systems. We are excited about the potential for it to become a permanent program under the EAT Local Foods Act,” added Lightfoot Schempf.

Congressional Members need to hear more details of how this program is benefiting communities, and they need to hear it from the participating farmers, food hubs, community partners, and families that can share their individual stories.

• Reach out to your Member of Congress and let them know how the program impacts your life! 
• Ask them to create a permanent program by cosponsoring the EAT Local Foods Act (S.3982)

The post Senate Bill Offers a Pathway to Sustain Local Food Purchasing Program appeared first on National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition.

Last week, the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC), alongside 97 food, farm, conservation, and rural organizations, delivered a letter to Congressional Appropriators urging them to fully fund the Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program (SARE) at $60 million in fiscal year (FY) 2025. 

SARE was one of NSAC’s first legislative accomplishments over 35 years ago and to this day remains one of our Coalition’s top funding priorities.  However, after more than 35 years of proven on-the-ground results, the program has yet to reach its fully authorized funding amount of $60 million. SARE is funded at $48 million for FY 2024. For a quick look at the final FY2024 agriculture funding levels, see NSAC’s detailed appropriations chart.

SARE funding is divided and administered by four regional Administrative Councils that coordinate with four regional host institutions and a National Coordinating Center. The four regional SARE programs (Northeast, Southern, North Central, and Western) manage several regionally based grant programs, including the Research and Education (R&E) grant program, the Professional Development Program (PDP), Farmer and Rancher (F&R) grants, and the Graduate Student Grant Program. SARE’s regional delivery structure ensures that local needs are met and all regions of the country benefit equally. The program’s priority on outreach ensures that SARE research results are disseminated directly to farmers and that practices can consequently be adopted in their fields at a much faster pace than through traditional agricultural research. This makes the SARE program one of the most cost effective and administratively efficient competitive research programs within the US Department of Agriculture (USDA).

The current demand for sustainable agriculture solutions far outweighs available resources. According to SARE’s 2021-2022 Biannual Report From the Field, less than half of Farmer Rancher Grant proposals were able to receive funding in 2021. Farmers and ranchers have critical insight when it comes to improving their systems, and the increasing demand for farmer-led research continues to outpace federal funding. Increased funding for SARE will play a crucial role in helping SARE’s farmer-driven research keep pace with the growing challenges related to the state of the rural economy, soil health, and competitiveness of American producers. 

Since 1988, SARE has funded 8,791 farmer-driven research and education initiatives through competitive grant awards totaling nearly $406 million. As the only farmer-driven, sustainable agriculture competitive research grant program offered by the USDA, SARE provides farmers and researchers with vital opportunities to better understand agricultural systems, increase profitability, and build resilience to climate change. SARE-backed initiatives have furthered stewardship of the land and its natural resources by funding research on topics such as soil health management, crop and livestock integration, soil erosion and runoff mitigation, and organic farming practices. In addition to research, many SARE projects also address social and demographic challenges faced by farming communities, including challenges faced by minority and underserved farmers, access to land, challenges for young and beginning farmers, and rural quality of life.

Key Projects Funded by SARE in each Region

North Central SARE, North Dakota 

Organic No-till in Perennial Cover

• Farmer James Ryan of North Dakota used a SARE Farmer Rancher Grant to study a form of organic no-till, the planting of annual grains in perennial cover, to learn if they could achieve a “consistent and reasonable” crop yield above their break-even bushels, as well as achieve additional soil and ecological benefits over two years. 

Northeast SARE, Pennsylvania

“Use of alternative row covers and pollinators to manage insect pests and improve cucurbit production and profitability”

• Pasa Sustainable Agriculture, an NSAC member, used a SARE grant to build upon the growing body of research addressing the need to identify a cost-effective, environmentally neutral control method for cucumber beetle, squash bug, and vine borer. Previous research has shown that row covers can have a positive impact on cucurbit crop yields by providing a barrier to insect pests. Their project focused on using row covers and introduced pollinators to control cucurbit pests, optimize cucurbit flower pollination, and increase cucurbit crop yields.  

Southern SARE, Georgia

Small Farms and Big Market Barriers

• Dr. Niki Whitley of Fort Valley State University, an 1890-Land Grant HBCU, is currently using a SARE Research and Education Grant to Research to identify barriers for small-scale farmers to market sustainable food products (meat, veggies, fruits) into large markets using surveys (multiple implementation methods), focus groups, and personal interviews, to investigate/determine the feasibility (for farmers/farm cooperatives/groups) of methods for overcoming those barriers and entering into larger markets (conduct feasibility studies). Through this grant they provide education, demonstrations, and resources for methods/processes to overcome barriers and enter into larger markets, sustaining and expanding the number of small-scale farmers marketing into larger markets and increasing available local, sustainable foods.

Western SARE, California

“Biointensive no-till farming in California: farmer-driven research and education on soil health, water efficiency and economic resiliency”

• Community Alliance with Family Farmers, an NSAC member, in collaboration with the University of California, Berkeley, and the University of California, Davis, is currently using a SARE grant to build a coalition of researchers, non-profits, and partner farms to explore how management practices on existing biointensive no-till systems affect soil health (carbon, microbial activity, and biodiversity), water conservation (soil water retention), farm economic resilience (including labor costs, land security, distribution networks), and potential response to climate change scenarios (crop nutrient density, drought response, seed biodiversity). In addition, this project will establish a “community science” training program through partnerships with regional community colleges and high schools to increase producer participation in research and education, ensure the scientific rigor of farmers’ observations, and share science-based extension.

Recently, President Biden released the FY2025 Presidential Budget Request which outlines a path forward for funding and policy, including a level funding request of $50 million for SARE in FY2025. As this fiscal year’s appropriations process begins in earnest on Capitol Hill in the weeks ahead, NSAC remains a strong supporter of SARE and continues to advocate for growing the program’s research and funding capacity. To learn more about SARE and its impacts, visit the NSAC Grassroots Guide.

The post SARE Delivers for Farmers. Will Congress Deliver for SARE? appeared first on National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition.