Is Organic Farming Risky? And More News

Posted on October 31, 2019 by Taylor in Farming Resources, Food Systems, News, Organic, Policy, Politics, Publications, Research, Sustainable Agriculture // 0 Comments

New blog posts from the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition include the topics Is Organic Farming Risky?, Farm To School, Farm Bill Implementation, Relocation, and Climate Change, USDA Relocation, Farmers of Color and Veteran Awards…

Is Organic Farming Risky? New Report Suggests No More So Than Non-Organic Farms

In this guest blog post, Jeff Schahczenski, an Agriculture and Natural Resource Economist at NCAT (an NSAC member organization), writes about a recent report on a five-year research and education project funded by NIFA that examines whether organic farms are riskier than non-organic farms. NCAT’s new report compared organic and non-organic farms using WFRP to determine overall risk. Is organic farming risky? The findings suggest that organic farming is no more risky than non-organic farming.

LOCAL FOOD NEWS

Kentucky Farmers Plant the Seeds for Farm to School

In honor of National Farm to School Month, NSAC is publishing a series of blog posts highlighting the experiences of Farm to School grant recipients and how these grants have impacted their communities around the country. This is the second post of the series and it focuses on a Kentucky farming couple dedicated to incorporating farm to school into their work as growers. Farmers Michelle and Nathan supply 100 percent Kentucky Proud lunch boxes for summer programs and invite students to their farm to see where their food is grown.

CONGRESS NEWS

Congressional Hearings Discuss Farm Bill Implementation, Relocation and Climate Change

Last week, both the House Agriculture Committee and the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee held hearings to review USDA’s implementation activities during the first 10 months of the 2018 Farm Bill. While the hearings’ main focus was on implementation, both chambers continued to raise questions over the relocation of USDA’s ERS and NIFA, and whether USDA is purposefully suppressing climate change research.

USDA NEWS

Comment: Farm, Union and Science Groups Urge Congress to Stand Strong Against USDA Relocation

After USDA REE Deputy Under Secretary Scott Hutchins repeatedly deflected questions about the consequences of the relocation of ERS and NIFA during a hearing last week, AFGE, ASA, NFU, NSAC, and UCS prepared a statement urging Congress to stand strong against ERS and NIFA relocation. A staggering 75 percent of staff have left the two agencies to date, delaying dozens of critical reports including those on the opioid epidemic, veterans’ diets, and international trade markets. The disruptions have also prevented research dollars from reaching the nation’s premier research institutions. Final

Awards Supporting Farmers of Color and Veterans Announced

USDA announced over $16 million supporting 33 projects through the Section 2501 program for FY 2019. This year’s funding increased by $7 million compared to last year’s funding cycle. This post highlights NSAC members that received grant awards and provides an analysis on grant allocations and distribution across the country. As Congress heads into conference for appropriations, NSAC will advocate for Section 2501 to receive $5 million in discretionary funding for FY 2020 to bring the program back to historic funding levels.