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CCOF Advocates for Organic's Fair Share in The 2007 Farm Bill
Get Involved
Check out the online video: Farm Bill Battle
Read the "Big 4" Farm Bill letter from the Governors
Read the letter of opposition to Section 123 of the Farm Bill
The Farm Bill Conference Committee completed its work this week, negotiating on a final package that totals $286 billion and faces a presidential veto. Depending on your news source, the veto may or may not be overridden. CCOF worked with other California food, farming, health, environmental, and nutrition groups to ensure that organics are fairly represented throughout this Farm Bill. CCOF's request for help bringing the needs of organic to Congressman Dennis Cardoza's attention generated a huge response, and we want to once again thank all of you who participated in this effort.
If this bill survives, it will cost $286 billion over five years, or $600 billion over ten years. Over the next decade, 73% of the funds will be spent on food stamp and nutrition programs.
Specialty crops received a great deal of attention in this bill, for the first time. This includes fruits, nuts, vegetables and nuts. The bill includes roughly $1.3 billion for a variety of grants, research and marketing assistance that targets organic agriculture and specialty crops. This amount is several times more than was provided in the 2002 Farm Bill. It includes $33 million for grants promoting farmers markets, $466 million in block grants to states and $22 million to help small growers pay the fees needed for certification as organic farmers. States will use the block grants to promote specialty crops (conventional and organic) with fruit and vegetable producing states like California getting a large share of the total amount of specialty crop funding.
Other programs to benefit organic include:
* $78 million over five years to increase specific funding for organic research that will bring new technical, scientific and marketing analysis to farmers and processors;
* $5 million for enhanced data collection, analysis and reporting that will contribute to many other programmatic advantages for organic;
* a required study to plan to overcome the current barrier for organic crop insurance coverage whereby organic farmers pay an extra 5 percent premium but are paid for any losses as though they were raising non-organic crops;
* authorization of enhanced funding for the National Organic Program within the Agriculture Marketing Service to ensure appropriate enforcement and accreditation, as well as international oversight of organic production; and
* attention within the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) for technical and conversion assistance that will help increase organic acreage within the United States.
The battle isn't won yet. The veto threat is very real and our friends in DC are working with others to get a veto override, should that be necessary. If the veto holds, several options are possible, including an extension of the 2002 Farm Bill for 2 more years (until a new President is in office) or for 5 years. CCOF opposes any further extension of the 2002 Farm Bill.
For more detailed information, please see Organic Trade Association (OTA)
or Sustainable Agriculture Coalition .
HISTORY OF CCOF'S INVOLVEMENT:
 More than a year ago, OFRF and CCOF, along with others, took this message directly to Congressman Dennis Cardoza at a Farm Bill listening session in Modesto, CA. Rep. Cardoza is the Chair of the House Subcommittee on Horticulture and Organic Agriculture. Our letter said, in part, "In order to remain competitive, the organic sector needs far more public investment in research, extension, marketing, and conservation. At the very least, federal investment in organic agriculture should be equivalent to its proportional share of the United States food market," the letter said. The letter asked Rep. Cardoza to include a number of organic proposals in his flagship Specialty Crop Marker Bill, the EAT Healthy America Act that was introduced in the House on March 20th, but those proposals were not included.
Key Proposals from the Organic Sign-on Letter:
- Provide mandatory funding for the CSREES-Integrated Organic Program (IOP) of at least $15 million/year and expand the IOP
- Establish a "Fair Share" framework at Agricultural Research Service (ARS) to ensure higher funding of organic agriculture research
- Ensure that the proposed Specialty Crops Economic and Policy Research Institute incorporates a specific focus on organic agriculture
- Increase current authorization funding for the Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) Program from $60 million to $100 million.
- Fully fund the Conservation Security Program (CSP) and direct CSP to prioritize evaluation of organic conservation practices in the program's scoring system
- Reauthorize Organic Certification Cost-Share at $25 million
- Establish a National Organic Conversion and Stewardship Incentive Program at $50 million annually that prioritizes small and mid-sized growers and the adoption of advanced 100% organic farming conservation systems.
- Increase funding for the Farmers Market Promotion Program (FMPP) and Value-Added Producer Grant Program
- Establish equitable fee structures in crop insurance programs as well as reimbursement rates for organic losses based on historical payments for the organic crops
Immediately following this action, Cindy Lashbrook, of CCOF certified Riverdance Farms, CCOF certified almond producer Glen Anderson, and Russ Lester of CCOF certified Dixon Ridge Farms took our message to Washington, DC in early March, joined by a California delegation of six organic farmers and six organizations coordinated by CCFF and the Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (SAC). Over the course of three days, delegation members met with 15 House and Senate offices to advocate for organic agriculture, as well as beginning and minority farmers, and increased access to local and sustainable food systems. "We need greater public investment in organics and local food systems, especially to help small and mid sized growers remain competitive in this increasingly globalized system," Lashbrook said. "California's organic growers protect our environment in so many ways. We help conserve our state's water, soil and air quality. We help reduce our dependency on fossil fuels. Yet, unlike corn, soybeans, and other major commodity crops, we receive almost no federal support."
The delegation visit to DC was part of CCFF's broader Farm Bill campaign for a Just and Sustainable Food and Farm Policy. Together with the California Food and Justice Coalition (CFJC), OFRF, CCOF, Agriculture and Land Based Training Association (ALBA), Community Alliance with Family Farmers (CCFF), and others, CCFF is working to bring urban and rural constituencies together to rally California Congressional support for Farm Bill legislation that embraces the vision for a more just and sustainable agriculture and food system.
Together, we are advocating for:
- Increased funding and improved effectiveness of conservation programs, especially the severely under funded Conservation Security Program
- Increased support for organic farmers
- Increased investment in local food systems, new markets and regional food distribution
- increased access to fresh, local, healthy and nutritious food, especially in limited resource communities and schools
- Increased support for beginning and minority farmers
- Meaningful payment limitation reform and gradually replacing commodity subsidies with a new system of farm income stabilization policies.
Read the CCOF and CCFF 2007 Farm Bill article: Organic Farmers Demand Their Fair Share.
Get Involved! Advocate, Educate, Speak Out and Spread the Word
Contact Stacy Clary at calfoodfarming@gmail.com to sign up for updates and action alerts. For more information, email or call Stacy at 831-763-2111 extension 12.
- Speak Out! Respond to Farm Bill action alerts by sending emails or calling your Member of Congress; you can communicate directly with and/or find out who your representative is at: house.gov/writerep
- Sign on to letters calling for specific actions on legislation at calfoodandfarming.org
- Join a Farm Bill delegation to meet with your member of Congress by sending an email to calfoodfarming@gmail.com
- Write letters to the editor or op-ed pieces for your local newspaper
- Educate others! Host a meeting in your community about the Farm Bill
- Spread the Word! Encourage your friends and colleagues to get involved
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