By Sara Kangas, government relations intern, National Farmers Union Over the past seventy years, intensive livestock operations like animal feeding operations (AFOs) have caused a shift in the culture of American farming. Influenced by scientific and technological advancements and increased efficiency practices, AFOs can now produce larger animals in a faster time span than ever before. … Read More
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 27, 2015 Contact: Andrew Jerome, 202-314-3106 [email protected] WASHINGTON (October 27, 2015) – National Farmers Union (NFU) President Roger Johnson thanked the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) for releasing safety net payments to nearly half the farms signed up for Agriculture Risk Coverage (ARC) or Price Loss Coverage (PLC), and asked the agency … Read More
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 27, 2015 Contact: Andrew Jerome, 202-314-3106 [email protected] WASHINGTON (October 27, 2015) – National Farmers Union (NFU) President Roger Johnson thanked the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) for releasing safety net payments to nearly half the farms signed up for Agriculture Risk Coverage (ARC) or Price Loss Coverage (PLC), and asked the agency … Read More
What is #GivingTuesday? Giving Tuesday is an an annual global day of giving that helps raise funds and awareness for important causes everywhere. On Tuesday, December 1, 2015, charities, families, businesses, community centers, and students around the world will come together for one common purpose: to celebrate generosity and to give. How is NFU participating? … Read More
What is #GivingTuesday? Giving Tuesday is an an annual global day of giving that helps raise funds and awareness for important causes everywhere. On Tuesday, December 1, 2015, charities, families, businesses, community centers, and students around the world will come together for one common purpose: to celebrate generosity and to give. How is NFU participating? NFU is running a … Read More
By Barbara Patterson, government relations representative, National Farmers Union Local control is eroding across the country and examples abound: in 2014, Oklahoma Governor Mary Fallin announced her state would block any city from increasing the minimum wage on the local level; Texas made local fracking bans illegal; and the Supreme Court of Ohio struck down … Read More
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 16, 2015 Contact: Andrew Jerome, 202-314-3106 [email protected] WASHINGTON (October 16, 2015) – National Farmers Union (NFU) today joined the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the international community in celebrating World Food Day. NFU President Roger Johnson highlighted the importance of family farmers, including women, in eradicating hunger and … Read More
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 16, 2015 Contact: Andrew Jerome, 202-314-3106 [email protected] WASHINGTON (October 16, 2015) – National Farmers Union (NFU) today joined the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the international community in celebrating World Food Day. NFU President Roger Johnson highlighted the importance of family farmers, including women, in eradicating hunger and … Read More
By Tom Driscoll, government relations representative, National Farmers Union Last month, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the first food waste reduction goal for the U.S., calling for a 50 percent reduction in food waste by 2030. Food waste is an important issue for family farmers, and National … Read More
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 9, 2015 Contact: Andrew Jerome, 202-314-3106 [email protected] WASHINGTON (October 9, 2015) – National Farmers Union (NFU) President Roger Johnson said the organization of 200,000 family farmers, ranchers and fishermen appreciated the recent interagency report on climate change and food security, noting that it will be helpful in making future policy decisions … Read More
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 9, 2015 Contact: Andrew Jerome, 202-314-3106 [email protected] WASHINGTON (October 9, 2015) – National Farmers Union (NFU) President Roger Johnson said the organization of 200,000 family farmers, ranchers and fishermen appreciated the recent interagency report on climate change and food security, noting that it will be helpful in making future policy decisions … Read More
NFU President Roger Johnson talks about NFU’s objection to the Trans-Pacific Partnership.
By Barbara Patterson, government relations representative, National Farmers Union Earlier today, trade ministers from each of the twelve Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) countries held a joint press conference in Atlanta to announce that after seven years of negotiations the group had come to an agreement. This trade agreement is a major deal that, if ratified, will … Read More
By Congressman Chris Gibson (NY-19) The average age of the American farmer is 58, and farmers over the age of 65 outnumber farmers under the age of 35 by a margin of six to one. As the majority of our farmers near retirement, we will need at least 100,000 new farmers to take their place. … Read More
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 1, 2015 Contact: Andrew Jerome, 202-314-3106 [email protected] WASHINGTON (October 1, 2015) – National Farmers Union (NFU) President Roger Johnson today hailed the nation’s many and varied cooperatives, noting that they have brought both political and economic might to family farmers, ranchers and rural America for over a century. “Since the founding … Read More
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 1, 2015 Contact: Andrew Jerome, 202-314-3106 [email protected] WASHINGTON (October 1, 2015) – National Farmers Union (NFU) President Roger Johnson today hailed the nation’s many and varied cooperatives, noting that they have brought both political and economic might to family farmers, ranchers and rural America for over a century. “Since the founding … Read More
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 1, 2015 Contact: Andrew Jerome, 202-314-3106 [email protected] WASHINGTON (October 1, 2015) – National Farmers Union (NFU) President Roger Johnson today hailed the nation’s many and varied cooperatives, noting that they have brought both political and economic might to family farmers, ranchers and rural America for over a century. “Since the founding … Read More
By Roger Johnson, president, National Farmers Union October is National Cooperative Month, a point on the calendar when more than 29,000 cooperatives from across the nation undertake some form of educational outreach to ensure that people better understand the cooperative business model and how it can improve life for rural Americans. And cooperatives are more … Read More
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 1, 2015 Contact: Andrew Jerome, 202-314-3106 [email protected] WASHINGTON (October 1, 2015) – National Farmers Union (NFU) President Roger Johnson today hailed the nation’s many and varied cooperatives, noting that they have brought both political and economic might to family farmers, ranchers and rural America for over a century. “Since the founding … Read More
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE September 30, 2015 Contact: Andrew Jerome, 202-314-3106 [email protected] WASHINGTON (September 30, 2015) – Congress and the administration need to insist that enforceable language against currency manipulation be included in all trade deals moving forward, including the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), argues National Farmers Union President Roger Johnson in a Huffington Post guest column. “Currency manipulation … Read More
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE September 30, 2015 Contact: Andrew Jerome, 202-314-3106 [email protected] WASHINGTON (September 30, 2015) – Congress and the administration need to insist that enforceable language against currency manipulation be included in all trade deals moving forward, including the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), argues National Farmers Union President Roger Johnson in a Huffington Post guest column. “Currency manipulation … Read More
By Roger Johnson, president, National Farmers Union We’ve been here before. Two years ago, an early October blizzard – the Atlas storm – buried western South Dakota in three feet of snow, killing tens of thousands of cattle and wiping out entire herds. Ranchers, devastated, looked to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) for help. … Read More
By Barbara Patterson, government relations representative, National Farmers Union The town of Smithfield, Virginia, located in the southeast part of the state, has a long history of animal production. The famous Smithfield ham, a product with a geographical indicator that requires all of its production be done within the city limits, originated in the town … Read More
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE September 25, 2015 Contact: Andrew Jerome, 202-314-3106 [email protected] WASHINGTON (September 25, 2015) – National Farmers Union (NFU) President Roger Johnson explains in a recent USDA Rural Cooperatives Magazine guest commentary that cooperatives are a founding principle for NFU, and that they will continue to embody the heart and soul of Farmers Union. “At NFU, cooperatives … Read More
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE September 25, 2015 Contact: Andrew Jerome, 202-314-3106 [email protected] WASHINGTON (September 25, 2015) – National Farmers Union (NFU) President Roger Johnson explains in a recent USDA Rural Cooperatives Magazine guest commentary that cooperatives are a founding principle for NFU, and that they will continue to embody the heart and soul of Farmers Union. “At NFU, cooperatives … Read More