By Zack Clark, government relations representative, National Farmers Union Last week, two major reports were released that further cemented what we already know – oversupply in the marketplace is driving commodity prices further and further downward, and after three years of declining prices, real estate values and credit conditions are beginning to deteriorate. The glut … Read More
Blog
Why Do Farmers Care About Climate Change? Extreme Precipitation
By Tom Driscoll, NFU Director of Conservation Policy and Education For farmers, rain is generally a good thing. Crops don’t grow without water, and other NFU Climate Column posts discuss the problems farmers do and will encounter getting enough rain and water as climate change progresses. But farmers also know that too much rain all at … Read More
The Farmers Market Miracle on Main Street
By Kriss Marion, Circle M Market Farm, Wisconsin Even though I’m one of those first-generation “niche” farmers, I always vowed I’d never do a farmers’ market. I got into farming because I like playing in the dirt and listening to frogs and crickets while I work. My dream revolved around shepherding animals, growing plants, shaping … Read More
Climate Column: Why Do Farmers Care About Climate Change? Drought
By Tom Driscoll, NFU Director of Conservation Policy and Education Crops won’t grow without rain, and livestock producers remember the enormous problems experienced with the severe drought in 2012. Drought is frightening for farmers and expensive for consumers. USDA’s Southern Plains Assessment of Vulnerability and Preliminary Adaptation and Mitigation Strategies for Farmers, Ranchers and Forest Land … Read More
Climate Column: Why Do Farmers Care About Climate Change? Heat Stress on Livestock
By Tom Somrack, NFU Government Relations Intern As the previous Climate Column noted, rising temperatures resulting from climate change can have serious repercussions for both crop growers and livestock producers. According to the National Climate Assessment: Climate Change Impacts in the United States, “Summer temperatures are projected to continue rising, and a reduction of soil moisture, which exacerbates heat waves, … Read More
Climate Column: Why Do Farmers Care About Climate Change? Rising Temperatures
By Tom Driscoll, NFU Director of Conservation Policy and Education According to the USDA-led report Climate Change and Agriculture in the United States: Effects and Adaptation, “The entire United States is likely to warm substantially over the next 40 years, with an increase of 1° to 2° C over much of the country.” USDA’s Regional … Read More
Climate Column: Why Do Farmers Care About Climate Change? Introduction
By Tom Driscoll, NFU Director of Conservation Policy and Education At the 2016 National Farmers Union (NFU) convention in Minneapolis, Minnesota, NFU members established that the organization should “lead efforts to help educate family farmers, ranchers and rural communities about how to adapt to the effects of climate change on their respective operations” and “support efforts … Read More
NFU Announces Largest Participant Class for 2016-17 Beginning Farmers Institute
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE June 28, 2016 Contact: Andrew Jerome, 202-314-3106 ajerome@nfudc.org WASHINGTON (June 28, 2016) – National Farmers Union (NFU) Beginning Farmers Institute (BFI) was created to empower the success of America’s next generation of farmers, and the NFU Foundation is pleased to announce the largest participant class in the program’s six-year history. Seventeen beginning … Read More
Labor Shortages in a Challenging Farm Economy
By Congresswoman Suzan DelBene (WA-1) As USDA has widely reported and producers are all too aware, commodity prices have been significantly declining recently. Nationally, net farm income has dropped 56 percent in the last three years. While not all agricultural products have experienced such a dramatic drop in price, there are other factors that are creating financial … Read More
The National Organic Program: Protecting the Integrity of Organic Agriculture
By Miles V. McEvoy, Deputy Administrator, National Organic Program The National Organic Program (NOP), a regulatory program housed in the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), oversees organic farmers and businesses to make sure that organic food is produced with organic methods. In April, AMS released data showing the organic industry is now made up of … Read More