The partial government shutdown, now in day 34, is compounding years of hardship from which rural communities may never recover.
On Fair Trade – Ralph Paige, Trade Summits at the Conventions, 2004
Ralph Paige passed on June 28, 2018. We recall his words from 2004 advocating for a government that is accountable to its constituents, promotes food safety and food security, and enters trade arrangements that respect growers’ need for a fair price and their customers recognition of the value of their products.
Farmers and Allies Urge Immediate Government Action to End Dairy Crisis
More than 50 family farmer, labor, and consumer organizations urged federal agriculture policymakers to take immediate steps to help US dairy farmers, who have struggled for years with milk prices that are well below their costs of production.
Addressing America’s Dairy Crisis
NFFC today sent this letter to Congressional and USDA agriculture leadership urging immediate action on the dairy crisis.
NFFC Members and Allies Seek Moratoriums on Farm Loan Accelerations and Foreclosures
In light of the current credit crisis and discrimination faced by family farmers of all races, genders and marital status, USDA must implement moratoriums on farm loan accelerations and foreclosures.
Organic is in the Soil
Unfortunately, USDA’s National Organic Standards Board did not heed the comments and concerns offered by Jim and other organic farmers, and voted to allow hydroponically grown produce to receive organic certification.
In Organic Farming, Rules Are Not Made to be Broken
No organic farmer will deny there are times when animals get sick, it is too wet to cultivate or it gets so dry you have to buy feed and you remember your past life as a conventional farmer, when there was a synthetic fix for the problem or feed that was an easy phone call away. But no one ever said farming would be easy; you just figure it out, learn from the problem and plan ahead.
GIPSA Defends Meatpackers and Poultry Companies, Not Family Farmers
If there was any hope that Secretary Perdue and this administration would stand up for small- and medium-sized family farmers and the rural communities they support, that has been dashed now.
Farmers & Farm Organizations Urge EPA & USDA to Address Threat from Dicamba Pesticide Drift
As members of Congress return to Capitol Hill today, 85 farm and farmer support organizations sent letters to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) urging them to better protect farm families from an unprecedented spike in crop loss from herbicide drift. Experts estimate that dicamba, used on Monsanto’s latest seed line, has already damaged at least 3.1 million acres of farmland, an area the size of Connecticut.
Pro Ag Holds Press Conference in Tunkhannock
At a press conference held at the Perkins Restaurant in Tunkhannock, Arden Tewksbury, Manager of Progressive Agriculture Organization (Pro-Ag) announced that several farm organizations, milk cooperatives, and county commissioners have petitioned the USDA in Washington DC asking for a national milk hearing for all dairy farmers. The petition clearly asks the Department of Agriculture to conduct milk hearings that would allow the average dairy farmer to testify and illustrate the severity of the problems that the majority of dairy farmers are experiencing.
Will Family Farmers and Ranchers Be Left Behind Again?
The Senate is expected to approve Perdue easily, but the question of his loyalty — to family farmers or to agribusiness — is imperative given the gravity of the economic situation facing rural America.
NFFC and Allies Oppose Coordinated Framework Process in Letter and Press Release
The undersigned farmer and public interest organizations are writing to express our deep disappointment with both the stated goals and the public engagement process led by the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) regarding the proposed modernization of federal regulation of biotechnology known as the Coordinated Framework.