Healthy Fields and Farm Economies Act and More

Posted on January 19, 2018 by Taylor in Farming Resources, Policy, Politics, Sustainable Agriculture // 0 Comments

The latest news from the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition featuring Welcome Back Congress, Healthy Fields and Farm Economies Act, Food Safety Rules Update, and Crop Insurance Modernization

Welcome Back Congress: New Year, Long To-Do List

Less than two weeks into the new year, and Congress already has an incredibly full plate. Both the House and Senate returned to work earlier this week, and will need to immediately dig in their massive to-do lists, not least of which include finalizing fiscal year (FY) 2018 appropriations legislation, preparing for the FY 2019 budget, and tackling the soon-to-expire 2014 Farm Bill. In this blog we breakdown what’s on Congress’s immediate 2018 to-do list, and identify what’s a stake and dependent on congressional action in the year ahead…

Release: Healthy Fields and Farm Economies Act to Strengthen Federal Conservation Program

Earlier this week the Healthy Fields and Farm Economies Act, a bipartisan bill was introduced in the House by Representatives John Faso (R-NY) and Marcia Fudge (D-OH). It will improve USDA conservation programs for American farmers and ensure the most efficient and effective use of taxpayer dollars. Specifically, the bill strengthens federal conservation programs by authorizing and providing funding for the measurement, evaluation, and reporting of USDA conservation program outcomes…

FDA NEWS

“Enforement Discretion” Policy to Enhance Flexibility while FDA Fixes Food Safety Rules

As we enter the first year of compliance under Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) new Produce Safety Rule, introduced as part of the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), producers continue to experience frustration and confusion regarding FDA’s distinction between a “farm” and a “facility.” Since the Produce Safety Rule was first introduced, this seemingly innocuous difference in definition has sent farmers and packers spinning…

CROP INSURANCE NEWS

CBO Report Provides Roadmap to Crop Insurance Modernization

In December, right before Christmas, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) quietly released a bombshell report revealing what many agriculture policy analysts have long known – that modernizing the federal crop insurance program wouldn’t spell disaster, but rather, savings and improvements. For example, the report found that by introducing a $50,000 cap on crop insurance premium subsidies, the Congress could save taxpayers $3.4 billion over 10 years…

Learn more about farm policy and agricultural politics from beginningfarmers.org at https://www.beginningfarmers.org/farm-policy-agricultural-politics/