Campaign for a Just and Sustainable Food and Farm Policy - CCFF Update
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Spring Farm Bill Campaign Update
May 2007
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Greetings!

Welcome to our Spring Farm Bill Campaign Update! This is a critical year for our country's food and farming system. Over the next several months, Congress will be writing legislation that will profoundly affect what we eat and how food is produced across the United States. The 2007 Food and Farm Bill is a historic opportunity to build a food system that supports family farmers, increases access to healthier food, and protects the environment. We cannot let another Farm Bill be enacted that perpetuates the status quo. Click on the articles of greatest interest to you or read on and see how you can be part of our campaign to promote a just and sustainable Food and Farm Policy.

This is an exciting time for our organization. With key California legislators appointed to powerful Ag Subcommittee leadership positions-California food and farming groups can play an important role in shaping the upcoming Farm Bill. And we are ready for the challenge! In January, Food and Farming hired seasoned organizer and research/policy analyst, Kari Hamerschlag, of New Harvest Consulting, to coordinate our Campaign for a Just and Sustainable Food and Farm Policy.

The California Coalition for Food and Farming (CCFF) is working to bring urban and rural constituents together to rally congressional support for a Farm Bill that promotes our priorities, as outlined in our short and long version of our Farm Bill Policy Platform. We are working together with our active coalition members who represent organic farmers (CCOF, OFRF, EFA), beginning and minority farmers (ALBA, California Farmlink), urban food interests (CFJC, CUESA), environmental issues (NRDC, Defenders of Wildlife) and others who span all four (CAFF, PANNA, Food First and others).

Over the past few months, the coalition has been active on a number of fronts. We have called for more Farm Bill funding and advocated for our priorities in the EAT Healthy America Bill and other Farm Bill related legislation, (also called "marker bills"). We helped organize a delegation of seven organic farmers and five organizations to take part in the Sustainable Agriculture Coalition's D.C. lobby events and met with fifteen Members of California's Congressional delegation. We are building new alliances and expanding our grassroots outreach in urban and rural agriculture districts. We are setting up in-district meetings and encouraging communication with Members of Congress through action alerts and email campaigns.

Key Action: One of our key strategies is to engage and enhance the voices of our urban Members of Congress in the Farm Bill. With support from the California Food and Justice Coalition and CCFF, Representative Solis (D-CA 32) is circulating a Dear Colleague letter among California's urban delegation urging the Chairman of the Ag Committee, Collin Peterson (D-MN), to support programs that increase access to fresh and healthy foods, support family farms, promote local food systems, and protect our natural resources. With your help, we can make sure every urban and suburban member in California signs onto this letter. If you work for an organization, please call your Representative and sign on to our organizational sign on letter Individuals are encouraged to send an email to your representative asking them to support our priorities and sign on to the Dear Colleague letter. Click here for a sample letter.

Budget Woes The new "pay go" rules in Congress requiring that new funding be offset by other programs or new taxes means that it will be very difficult to secure funds for our Farm Bill priorities. Programs may be authorized in committee but will likely be cut out at the later appropriations stage, unless more resources are made available now. Pressure is needed to ensure that the Democratic leadership makes more resources available now for programs that yield critical future dividends (e.g. programs that increase access to healthier food, support family, beginning and minority farmers and protect the environment).The dire budget situation also creates greater urgency for Commodity Program reform so that resources can be freed up for other priority areas. If you live in San Francisco, please let Nancy Pelosi know how important it is to have more funds available for key Farm Bill priorities. Use portions of our sample letter to make your case. Read below for more info on the budget situation.
With Farm Bill markups in the Agriculture Committees just around the corner, many Farm Bill proposals, also called "marker bills" have been introduced or are in the process of being introduced in the coming weeks. Once introduced, they get referred to relevant subcommittees for review and many of their proposals will be incorporated into the overall Farm Bill. It is important to enlist as many co-sponsors as possible to show support for a particular set of legislative proposals. While this is not an exhaustive list, some of the bills that best reflect Food and Farming priorities include:

Introduced:
  • Rep. Kind's (D-WI) Healthy Farms, Foods and Fuels Act (HR1551/S 919);
  • Reps. DeLauro's (D-CT) and Gilchrest's (R-MD) Farm, Nutrition and Community Reinvestment Act;
  • Rep. Cardoza's (D- CA) 2007 EAT Healthy America Act (HR1600);
  • Senator Feingold's (D-WI) Rural Opportunities Act of 2007 (S566).

    • Still to be Introduced*:
  • Rep. Blumenauer's (D-OR) Local and Community Foods Bill;
  • Rep. Baca's (D-CA) Minority Farmer Bill;
  • Sens. Leahy's (D-VT) and Harkin's (D-IA) Organic Bill;
  • Sen. Harkin's and Rep. Herseth-Sandlin's (D-SD) Beginning Farmer Initiative; and
  • Sen. Brown's (D-OH) Healthy and Local Foods Bill; and
  • Sens. Grassley's (R-IA) and Dorgan's (D-ND) Commodity Payment Limitation Reform Proposal.

    • *these are not official bill names
    We need you to get involved and take action.

  • Send an email message asking your member of Congress to sign on to the California Dear Colleague letter and co-sponsor the Kind, DeLauro-Gilchrest, and/or Hersith-Sandlin Bills. Click here for a sample letter.
  • If you work for an organization, please sign on to our organizational sign on letter calling on California legislators to support CCFF's priority legislative proposals and sign onto the Dear Colleague letter.
  • Make a donation to this campaign. The campaign is facing a serious funding shortfall. Please give what you can.
  • Make calls to your Member of Congress urging them to sign on to the Dear Colleague letter and support our priorities by co-sponsoring the Kind, DeLauro-Gilchrest and Herseth-Sandlin "marker" bills.
  • Post information on the Farm Bill on your website and link to Food and Farming's website.
  • Help set up and/or attend a meeting with a Member of Congress or their staff. Members are home for a week over Memorial Day recess. Contact Kari Hamerschlag if you are interested.
  • Volunteer with the Campaign. Contact Kari Hamerschlag for more information.
  • Write and op ed piece, blog, or letter to the editor highlighting changes that are needed in the Farm Bill. Contact TV and radio shows and ask them to cover our issues in the Farm Bill.
  • Forward this newsletter to your friends and colleagues.
    		•
    In March 2007, Rep. Dennis Cardoza (D-Merced), the new chair of the Subcommittee on Horticulture and Organic Agriculture, introduced the EAT Healthy America Act, California's flagship Specialty Crop Marker Bill. This bill is vitally important for California's Specialty Crop industry and our environment. While we support the conservation and nutrition titles of this bill, we have been advocating for more provisions that would support organic agriculture, small-scale, beginning and minority farmers, and local food systems. In February, we organized a sign -on letter outlining our proposals that was endorsed by more than 100 organic farmers, businesses and organizations. Read the full story
    In March, California Food and Farming helped organize a delegation of five organizations and seven farmers to take our message to Washington as part of the Sustainable Agriculture Coalition's D.C. fly-in and lobby visits. In total, our delegation met with 13 House offices and our two Senate offices. The collective energy of 150 farmers, ranchers, rural community, and food system advocates was powerful and inspiring. Read more
    In April, several Food and Farming coalition members and allied groups met with Representative Sam Farr (D-CA 17), one of our greatest advocates on the Hill for sustainable agriculture. As co-chair of the Organic Caucus, Rep. Farr offered his support for mobilizing the caucus to weigh in with the Ag Committee on organics and local food systems. He advised: "Activate the grassroots network. It's most important for elected officials to hear from the people in their districts. Voters beat lobbyists everyday." Read more
    In April, Food and Farming, together with Food First and the Ecology Center met with Rep. Barbara Lee's (D-Oakland) office. Rep. Lee's staff were extremely interested and shocked to learn about the connections between obesity, diabetes, heart disease and the Farm Bill. We explained how current farm bill commodity subsidies result in an overproduction of cheap processed food with calorie dense, nutritionally deficient additives such as partially hydrogenated soybean oil (transfats) and high fructose corn syrup. We encouraged Rep. Lee to support proposals in the Farm Bill that will shift money out of harmful subsidies into programs that increase access to healthy foods, especially fruits and vegetables, in schools and underserved communities. California Food and Justice Coalition, along with Los Angeles Hunger Action, recently brought a similar message to Rep. Xavier Becerra's (D CA) staff. Other in-district meetings are being scheduled with Members of Congress. Contact CCFF if you are interested in setting up or attending a meeting.
    In the next few months, Members of the House and Senate Ag committees will write their respective versions of the 2007 Farm Bill. In mid to late May, House Ag Committee Chair, Collin Peterson, is expected to send his Chairman's "mark"-his legislative priorities and specific funding allocations-to each of the House Ag subcommittees. House and Senate versions of the Bill could go to the floor for a vote by late July, but many observers believe this is optimistic. Read more about the timeline.
    Despite exploding awareness about the need for dramatic reform of our food and farming system, major federal budget constraints diminish prospects for significant funding increases and real reform in this year's Farm Bill. The current baseline only provides enough funding to support existing Farm Bill programs at current levels, This is in stark contrast to the situation five years ago when there was $75 billion dollars allocated for new Farm Bill programs. Thanks to all who responded to Food and Farming's call to action demanding more money for the Farm Bill budget. Clearly our calls helped make a difference! A major nationwide lobby effort was successful in getting the House and Senate budget committees to set aside $20 billion and $15 billion respectively in reserve funds for new or expanded programs. It is unclear, however, how they intend to convert those reserve funds into something real. Under the new "pay-go" rules, they will have to find offsets through tax increases or spending reductions elsewhere. More pressure is needed on Democratic leadership to make the money available. As we move forward, groups will need to come together to identify key programs to cut. The Grassley-Dorgan Amendment is one key option. (See below)
    Thank you to all who responded to our Action Alert to rally support for this proposal in late March! California Senators Feinstein and Senator Boxer offices reported receiving dozens of calls and emails on this legislation that would cut the commodity program budget by $1.1 billion, by limiting per farm payments to $250,000 and closing existing loopholes. The savings would be used to increase funding for conservation programs, food stamps, and renewable energy and rural development in the 2007 Farm Bill. We need to let Senator Feinstein and Senator Boxer know how important this issue is to voters. Please take action as this amendment will come up for a vote again soon. Also keep an eye out on new marker bills that will propose more far reaching commodity payment reform. Read more
    April 18 was a historic day for organics, as numerous leaders from the movement were given the opportunity to testify in the first hearing ever held on organic agriculture in the House Committee on Agriculture. Subcommittee Chairman Dennis Cardoza, (D-CA), and other members of the committee, listened intently as the three panels of experts on organic agriculture spoke about the challenges and opportunities facing organic agriculture. Read more
    We've made great progress in raising money for our Campaign for a Just and Sustainable Food and Farm Policy. Thanks so much to our recent funders for helping us through the home stretch and advance our goals of influencing federal food policy!

  • Grants: Jessie Smith Noyes Foundation ($20,000); Colombia Foundation ($25,000)
  • Organizational Members: Urban Village ($1,000); CCOF ($350); CUESA ($250)
  • Donors and Supporters: Jacobs' Farm ($5,000); Richard & Anne Morris ($500); Cindy Daniel ($250); John Ledbetter ($250); Phil McGrath ($250); Clover-Stornetta ($100), Gretchen Warner ($100), Keith Warner ($100), Bud Hoekstra ($15)

    • We're still short of raising our full 2007 budget. Without our campaign, and your financial support, many of our priorities, especially those that focus on the needs of small and mid-sized sustainable growers, will be ignored in the Farm Bill debate in California. Please consider making a donation to our organization to support our Farm Bill campaign!
    A Pivotal Time for What We Eat: Why the farm bill matters and how you can act now Wednesday, June 6, 6:30 to 8:30 pm A farmer, a chef, and food and farm advocates will discuss the 2007 Farm (and Food) Bill's effects on farms, consumers, and the health of our nation. Find out what's going on with the Farm Bill right now, why it matters, and how you can make a difference. Time is running out for influencing this legislation that will shape our entire food system. Light refreshments will be served before the event.

    Speakers: Ann Cooper, "Renegade Lunch Lady" of the Berkeley Unified School District and author of Lunch Lessons; Grant Brians, Farmer, Heirloom Organics; Larry Cohen, Director, Prevention Institute; Kari Hamerschlag, Policy Director, California Coalition on Food and Farming; and Paula Jones, Director, San Francisco Food Systems

    Event sponsors: Center for Urban Education about Sustainable Agriculture (CUESA), California Coalition on Food and Farming, San Francisco Food Systems Location: Port Commission Hearing Room, 2nd floor of the Ferry Building, Embarcadero at Market St., San Francisco Cost: free For more information, contact: Julie Cummins Director of Education the Center for Urban Education about Sustainable Agriculture (CUESA) Phone: 415.291.3276 x106

    Farm Bill Update and Discussion at the Heartland Festival and River Fair, June 2, 2pm at Riverdance Farms in Livingston, Ca: with CCFF's Policy Director, Kari Hamerschalg. Come learn about the Farm bill and how you can get involved while enjoying this fabulous celebration of Food, Farming and Healthy Living in the San Joaquin Valley. For more information: www.eco-farm.org/heartland

    Thanks so much for your continued commitment and support of our programs - we'll keep you posted as we move forward on our campaign! And as always, please feel to contact us with any comments or questions.

    Sincerely,
    Kris O'Connor, CCFF President
    California Coalition for Food and Farming

    phone: 831-763-2111 ext 15