Money for Nothing, Chickens for Free

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More for farmer’s markets. Watch for promotion of farm-to-table types of plans – money for any program that helps small niche farmers find direct markets for what they produce. For George Naylor, a 58-year-old corn-and-soybean farmer in Iowa, it could make all the difference. “I’ve thought about going to specialty crops, but I can’t be sure of a market – once you plant your field in lettuce, you’re committed for the whole season,” Naylor says. “That can be scary if you’re not sure you can sell it.”

Fair pricing. Many groups are working to shake up the farm subsidies program, which gives $23 billion annually to the nation’s farmers. Kathy Ozer, executive director of the National Family Farm Coalition, says her group is hoping for fundamental change. “Instead of farmers getting most of their income from the government in the form of subsidies, the farmers should be earning a better price from buyers,” she says. In other words, they want the agricultural equivalent of minimum wage – a minimum price paid per bushel of corn, for instance.

Conservation. There are several conservation and environmental programs that could be expanded, or deleted, under the farm bill. Noble says her group is pushing for expansion of those, such as the Conservation Security Program, which pays farmers to use smart environmental methods of agriculture. Other programs would pay landowners to protect endangered plants or wildlife, or to protect wetlands on their property, even if it means letting land go fallow.

For more information, see www.Grit.com/resources.aspx.

As Seen on TV: Get Involved

Educate yourself with a comprehensive look at the farm bill and its history.

The government’s farm bill page
www.usda.gov/farmbill

Visit these Web sites to connect with some organizations that are lobbying for environmental and sustainable farming issues in the 2007 farm bill.

Center for Rural Affairs
www.cfra.org

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