Latest Sustainable Agriculture News: Farm Bill, Food Safety, and More

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Latest News from the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition: End of July, 2013

Farm Bill and Agriculture Appropriations – Clear as Mud: The congressional month-long August recess is just a week away.  In more normal times, as those types of deadlines loom, deals get done on Capitol Hill.  Not so this year.  The path forward on a new five-year farm bill and on the set of appropriations bills to fund the government for the coming fiscal year are clear as mud.  With the federal debt ceiling to be hit this fall, it promises, sadly, to be another season of manufactured, interlocking crises in the nation’s Capitol.  Read more…

Food Safety Comment Deadline Extended; NSAC Releases FSMA Issue Analysis for Farmers: Earlier this year, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released new proposed regulations detailing standards for food safety on produce farms and in facilities that process food for people to eat.  The rules are not yet final, and FDA is seeking comments from producers, processors, and stakeholders to help shape the final rules before they become law.  All of these rules are part of FDA’s implementation of the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), which President Obama signed into law in 2011.  Read more…

Conservation Reserve Program Sign-Up Results: On Monday, July 22, USDA announced it is awarding new Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) contracts for 1.7 million acres starting on October 1.  There are currently 26.9 million acres enrolled in the program, but on October 1, 3.3 million acres are scheduled to leave the reserve.  Hence with today’s additions, it brings the total to about 25.3 million acres, the lowest total since 1988 when the program was in its infancy and the farm crisis loomed large.  Read more…

Organic Research and Outreach in the North Central Region: The Ceres Trust recently released a report, Organic Research and Outreach in the North Central Region, that documents the growth in organic research, extension and teaching in the 12-state north central region, and includes state-specific details about student organic farms, certified organic research land and animals, sources of organic research funding, dissemination of organic research results through field days and peer-reviewed journals, organic education efforts of nonprofit organizations, and other relevant information.  Read more…