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News

Send a letter to Congress to support fresh, local, healthy food – New online petition website launched HealthyFarmBill.org

January 22, 2007
Farm and Food Policy Project
Report Launch -
"Seeking Balance in U.S. Farm and Food Policy"
Link to launch webpage

Events

March 18, 2007
Panel Presentation-
"Seeking Balance in the Next Farm Bill"
Community Food Security Coalition Conference
Baltimore, MD

February 22, 2007
Speaking Engagement -
KC Healthy Kids
Kansas City, KS

Analysis

April 19, 2007
Conservation Provisions Matrix
Diversity Provisions Matrix
Farm Viability Provisions Matrix
Nutrition Provisions Matrix
Rural Provisions Matrix

March 6, 2007
Comparison of USDA 2007 Farm Bill Proposal to Priorities in "Seeking Balance"

Policy

March 15, 2007
News Release - First Major Agriculture Bill in New Congress
by Reps. Kind, Gerlach, Allen, Sens. Menendez, Boxer

In the News

March 6, 2007

Farm Press (by Forrest Laws) -

"Groups ask Congress to restore Farm bill funding"
The groups, which run the gamut from the Agriculture and Land-Based Training Association to World Hunger Year, asked that Congress restore $6 billion in budget cuts made to the conservation, rural development, energy and research titles of the current farm bill since 2002. read more

February 12, 2007

Times Herald Record (by Jennifer Wilkins) -

"New farm bill brings many voices to policy table"
What's new about the emerging dialogue on the future of U.S. agriculture policy is the breadth of interests reflected and united. For the first time, nutrition, public health and hunger advocates are at the table with environmental, farmer, justice and faith-based groups to craft cross-cutting agriculture and food-policy recommendations. read more

January 30, 2007

Peoria Journal-Star (by Alan Guebert) -

"No run-of-the-mill Farm Bill this year"
At their core, though, all these newly found ideas and players really aren't that new, explains Ferd Hoefner, policy director of the Sustainable Agriculture Coalition and a member of the Farm and Food Policy Project. "It's just that now there's a growing awareness in Congress," he says, "that yesterday's 'farm' bill should move more to a 'farm and food' bill to serve all of America - consumers, communities, the environment and conservation, not just farmers and ranchers." read more

January 22, 2007

Brownfield Ag News Subscription Service (by Peter Shinn) -

"WTO developments focus attention on 2007 farm bill"
Ralph Grossi, Executive Director of American Farmland Trust, told Brownfield Monday he sees both the request for consultations over the U.S. farm program by multiple countries and progress toward a new WTO deal as factors that will, indeed, have an impact on the 2007 farm bill debate.

"Conservation, Nutrition Groups Are Wary Of CBO Scoring"
Grossi [President of American Farmland Trust] noted that high grain prices, driven by surging interest in renewable fuels, means there might be as much as $7 billion to $8 billion a year less in the agriculture baseline when CBO releases its next budget figures in March. "It means we are obligated to ensure that we can justify and explain how increased funding will benefit the public," Grossi said.

"New Alliance Weighs in on Farm Bill"
The report, titled "Seeking Balance in U.S. Farm and Food Policy," pushes for a broad range of issues in the next farm bill, from helping young and beginning farmers to aiding cooperative conservation partnerships. The breadth of the report reflects the diversity of organizations involved in the project, an alliance of family farm, rural, conservation, sustainable and organic agriculture, anti-hunger, nutrition, faith-based, public health and other groups. read more

"Reformers hope to change how the farm bill is written"
"This is an opportunity for all small farms, and specifically for black farmers," Harris said. "We're not going to just fight; we're going to be part of the process." read more

"A farm bill that serves us all"
Research in Philadelphia and Chicago shows this affluent nation actually has "food deserts" - sections of cities where supermarkets and healthful food are so scarce that residents are obliged to rely on ill-stocked corner markets and greasy takeout places. Health is poorer; actual death from such diet-related diseases as diabetes, obesity and high blood pressure is higher in the "deserts." Model programs in Philadelphia, Baltimore and Chicago are seeking - in part with state subsidies - to lure supermarkets into the deprived areas. read more

"Another Call for Farm Policy Changes"
To listen, search by the above title on the USDA Radio website.

January 18, 2007

Catholic New Service (by Mark Pattison) -

"New 'Seeking Balance' statement lists priorities for next farm bill"
The National Catholic Rural Life Conference in Des Moines, Iowa, has joined 350 other organizations in a statement calling for substantial revisions to U.S. agriculture policy in the 2007 farm bill. "We have witnessed the continued loss of farms, farmers and valuable farmland. Unprecedented farm and agribusiness consolidation limits competition and innovation in the marketplace," read more

Inquiries

Media and policy inquiries:

Allen Hance
Project Coordinator
(202) 464-4015
news@farmandfoodproject.org

General inquiries and endorsements:

Jessie Dowling
Outreach Coordinator
(202) 543-1300
info@farmandfoodproject.org

Updates List Serve

ffpp-updates@lists.farmandfoodproject.org (moderated)