policy

Organic Farming Research Foundation Meets with Congressional Staffers at USDA Agricultural Research Service

Rep. Jimmy Panetta to Co-Sponsor Agricultural Resilience Act

The Organic Farming Research Foundation (OFRF) hosted Representative Jimmy Panetta’s (D-California, 20) congressional staffers at the USDA Agricultural Research Service (ARS) in Salinas, California, last week. The site visit focused on the importance of increased investment in organic research and was instrumental in Rep. Panetta’s decision to co-sponsor H.R. 2803, the Agricultural Resilience Act (ARA).

Tags

New CDFA Planning Grant Program Open for Comments

The California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) is accepting public comment through June 15 on the funding rules for its new Conservation Agriculture Planning Grant Program.  Please consider making a comment using the points outlined below.

An outcome of CCOF’s advocacy for CDFA support for organic farmers in its Climate Smart Agriculture programs, this new program received $20 million in Governor Gavin Newsom’s May revision of the state budget.

Food and Agriculture Bond Passes Through Assembly Agriculture Committee

On Thursday, April 15, CCOF­–co-sponsored AB-125 passed the Assembly Agriculture Committee with a bipartisan 10–0 vote, moving on to the Natural Resources Committee. The “Equitable Economic Recovery, Healthy Food Access, Climate Resilient Farms, and Worker Protection Bond Act of 2022,” which would invest $3.302 billion across the food and agriculture system over five years, would constitute the largest state investment in organic agriculture in California’s history.

Federal Government Approves Another Round of Financial Relief

Earlier this month, the federal government approved $1.9 trillion in COVID-19 economic relief, including $1400 stimulus checks for most Americans, vaccination resources, and aid to state and local governments. Provisions in the package for agriculture, known as the American Rescue Plan, amount to a relatively minor $16 billion spread across several programs.

State Bill Seeks Support for Sustainable, Organic Agriculture

A new bill authored by Salinas Valley legislator and the new chair of the Assembly Agriculture Committee, Robert Rivas, represents the most significant investment in organic agriculture in California’s history. AB 125, The Equitable Economic Recovery, Healthy Food Access, Climate Resilient Farms, and Worker Protection Bond Act, would make a $3 billion investment in regional infrastructure, worker protections, food access, and sustainable and organic farming.