Posted by Jane Clark
From
Scotty Johnson
National Rural Community Outreach Campaign
Defenders of Wildlife
Defenders Rural Updates!
August 29, 2001
Cultivating a vision where rural and urban folks join together to ensure
safe food, abundant family farms, healthy critters, clean water and a wild
Earth. Whether you live in the country or the city, help us spread the
word; email this to a friend and suggest they subscribe! To subscribe
go to http://www.familyfarmer.org/sections/ruralsubscribe.html
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1. Ag Conservation in the News: CRP Makes the New York Times
2. House Farm Bill: 10 Things We Hate About You
3. Corn Growers Oppose Fast Track Legislation
4. Farm Bill Activism - A Quick Tutorial for Everyone Who Eats
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1. AGRICULTURAL CONSERVATION IN THE NEWS: CRP MAKES
THE NEW YORK TIMES
A front page article in the New York Times (August 27) describes the
benefits of the Conservation Reserve Program for waterfowl and family
farmers. In the Prairie Pothole Region of the Dakotas and Montana, the
program is credited for "the revival of a North American duck population
that a decade ago was in serious decline." The article also profiles two
farm families whose income from CRP has helped them to continue
farming their land. The success of CRP in traditional farm program
states like North Dakota serves as an example for "lawmakers
promoting more subsidies for conservation and less for traditional row
crops like wheat and corn." Unfortunately, these lawmakers face
opposition from "large farmers, backed by powerful agribusiness lobbies
[who] oppose increases for conservation programs" and from the House
Agriculture Committee, whose version of the Farm Bill would severely
weaken provisions that discourage farmers from draining wetlands on
their land. The full article is available at
www.nytimes.com/2001/08/27/national/27FARM.html?pagewanted=print
2. HOUSE FARM BILL: 10 THINGS WE HATE ABOUT YOU
The House Agriculture Committee's version of the Farm Bill (see
www.familyfarmer.org/sections/fb-house.html), may come to the floor as
early as September 10th. Www.familyfarmer.org is spreading the word
about all the things that are wrong with this bill (H.R. 2646).
Preliminary
responses to a survey of problems with the bill include: it subsidizes
large farms and helps them become even larger; it weakens program
eligibility requirements so that large corporations could receive
payments; it does nothing to stop agribusiness control of prices and
markets; it cuts technical assistance funding and NRCS authority for
implementing conservation programs; it weakens the focus of important
programs such as CRP, WRP and EQIP; it guts the critical
Swampbuster provision; and it subsidizes large confined animal feeding
operations. A full list of the problems with the bill, plus recommended
revisions, will be available at www.familyfarmer.org by September 5. If
you have recommended additions to the list of things we hate about
H.R. 2646, please send them to [log in to unmask]
3. CORN GROWERS OPPOSE FAST TRACK LEGISLATION
Saying that the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) has
"devastated farmers from the wheatfields of Canada to the Cornfields of
Mexico', the American Corn Growers Association (ACCA) is officially
opposing current legislation before Congress that would grant President
Bush "fast track" or "trade promotion authority." In a press release dated
August 21, 2001 ACCA spokesman David Senter said that "until we can
accomplish a major overhaul of NAFTA, to insure that it is fair for
farmers, farm workers and helps sustain family farms and the rural
economy, ACGA will oppose the negotiation and ratification of the
expansion of that trade agreement." In opposing fast track authority
ACCA has joined a broad alliance of consumer, conservation, religious
and farm organizations who demand fundamental reform in trade policy.
The American Corn Growers Association is not to be confused with the
National Corn Growers Association who are generally considered to
represent the interests of the grain commodity groups over that of the
family or independent farmer. For more info on ACGA go to:
www.acga.org
4. FARM BILL ACTIVISM - A QUICK TUTORIAL FOR EVERYONE
WHO EATS
Keeping up with the shenanigans in Washington regarding farm policy
legislation can be as much fun as sorting socks, but anyone who grows,
or eats food should be paying close attention right now. For both a "big
picture" overview on what changes are needed in federal farm policy,
and a quick tutorial regarding what is happening in Congress right now,
go to a http://www.familyfarmer.org/sections/next.html#ONE
Whether you live in rural America, or are an urban consumer, your
democratic participation is needed. Let's help create agriculture and
food production that works for Earth and the families that live on it. Stay
tuned and stay involved with Rural Updates! weekly electronic
publication.
Rural Updates!
Scotty Johnson
National Rural Community Outreach Campaign
[log in to unmask]
Defenders of Wildlife
Visit our website at www.familyfarmer.org
520 623-9653 x3
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