By Tom Driscoll, Director of NFU Foundation and Conservation Policy For the past few weeks on the Beginning Farmer Forum, as discussions on the next farm bill challenge us to think about how the Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) can best assist farmers and landowners in reaching conservation goals, we have focused on the Conservation … Read More
By Tom Driscoll, Director of NFU Foundation and Conservation Policy On the Climate Column, we have noted that drought is expected to become more frequent, severe and damaging to farmers as the climate continues to change globally. Farmers with operations of all types and sizes need to be aware of drought. The length and intensity of … Read More
By Tom Driscoll, Director of NFU Foundation and Conservation Policy In our previous post on the Beginning Farmer Forum, we introduced the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP). CSP can help beginning farmers achieve efficiencies in their business by providing technical assistance and incentive payments to establish installations or enhance practices that can reduce input costs or … Read More
By Tom Driscoll, Director of NFU Foundation and Conservation Policy Extreme precipitation is a serious concern for farmers as the climate continues to change. In many areas, downpours will be concentrated earlier in the year. Standing water and moist soil will work against farmers trying to get into the fields in time for crop insurance … Read More
By Zack Clark, NFU Director of Government Relations Over the summer and into the fall, National Farmers Union has, as part of coalitions and on its own, lobbied Congress regarding tax reform. In the early stages, we advocated for what should be included in the bill. When details emerged, we voiced concern and advocated for … Read More
By Zack Clark, NFU Director of Government Relations Over the summer and into the fall, National Farmers Union has, as part of coalitions and on its own, lobbied Congress regarding tax reform. In the early stages, we advocated for what should be included in the bill. When details emerged, we voiced concern and advocated for … Read More
By Sophie Neems, NFU Intern ‘Tis the season. . . for agricultural conferences! The harvest is done and the cows have been moved to winter pasture, which means that educational opportunities for farmers and ranchers abound. However, here at National Farmers Union, we understand that it’s not always possible to leave the farm unattended and … Read More
By Tom Driscoll, Director of NFU Foundation and Conservation Policy NFU’s Climate Column has covered a number of farming practices, including conservation tillage and rotational grazing, that can help farmers increase profits by saving money on inputs, energy, and labor. Beginning farmers can receive assistance to implement such practices, as well as incentive payments for the environmental benefits … Read More
By Tom Driscoll, Director of Conservation Policy and NFU Foundation As we’ve noted on the Climate Column, climate change will disturb the precipitation patterns and temperatures on which farmers rely to grow crops. Farmers will need to adapt to these changes by implementing new practices and readjusting old ones. One option is selecting seeds for staple crops – … Read More
By Tom Driscoll, Director of NFU Foundation and Conservation Policy As we discussed last week on the Beginning Farmer Forum, the business infrastructure – such as federally-inspected livestock processing facilities for smaller orders and mills that service demand for local feed or flour – that would help beginning farmers connect with emerging markets often doesn’t exist … Read More
By Tom Driscoll, Director of Conservation Policy and NFU Foundation Farming is one of the few professions with the ability to not only reduce ongoing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, but to also remove existing GHGs from the atmosphere. National Farmers Union supports policies and programs that maximize agriculture’s GHG elimination potential by offering value to farmers … Read More
By Tom Driscoll, Director of NFU Foundation and Conservation Policy As we’ve discussed here on the Beginning Farmer Forum, access to markets is among the greatest challenges for new producers. Oftentimes, beginning farmers face fewer obstacles in emerging markets than in well-established ones. For example, beginning farmers may be able to grow products appropriate for local and … Read More
By Tom Driscoll, Director of NFU Foundation and Conservation Policy As we’ve discussed here on the Beginning Farmer Forum, access to markets is among the greatest challenges for new producers. Oftentimes, beginning farmers face fewer obstacles in emerging markets than in well-established ones. For example, beginning farmers may be able to grow products appropriate for local and … Read More
By Tom Driscoll, Director of Conservation Policy and NFU Foundation Environmental markets, in addition to being science based, quantifiable, innovative, and permanent, will have to offer farmers adequate incentives to adopt new conservation practices. Cases in which a single practice achieves more than one quantifiable environmental benefit, verifiably reducing more than one pollutant, payments for credits … Read More
By Natalie Grote, NFU Intern Many veterans, upon returning home from serving our country, discover a newfound passion for farming or ranching. After putting in hours of hard work to start their operations, farmer veterans are often determined to both make a living as well as bolster their local economies by selling their homemade products, … Read More
By Cathy Statz, Wisconsin Farmers Union Education Director A mobile home park resident. A dairy farmer. A college student. A produce grower. A home care worker. A hardware store owner. What do these people all have in common? Each is the owner of a business called a cooperative. Many of us in rural America are familiar … Read More
By Cathy Statz, Wisconsin Farmers Union Education Director A mobile home park resident. A dairy farmer. A college student. A produce grower. A home care worker. A hardware store owner. What do these people all have in common? Each is the owner of a business called a cooperative. Many of us in rural America are familiar … Read More
By Tom Driscoll, Director of Conservation Policy and NFU Foundation Farmers are a key participant in mitigating climate change. Agriculture is one of a few sectors that can sink existing atmospheric greenhouse gasses (GHGs) as well as reduce emissions moving forward. Environmental markets could compensate farmers for natural resource conservation benefits achieved on their land. A … Read More
October is National Cooperative Month, a time when more than 29,000 cooperatives across the country advocate for the cooperative business model and its myriad benefits for co-op members, consumers, and local communities. Cooperatives are of particular importance in rural America, where they have offered both political and economic sovereignty for over a century. Farmers Union’s roots … Read More
By Tom Driscoll, Director of NFU Foundation and Conservation Policy A growing interest in local and regional food offers lucrative opportunities for beginning farmers, and growing farm products for these markets often require a less significant investment in land and equipment than other production methods would. However, direct-to-consumer sales do require that farmers spend a … Read More
By Tom Driscoll, Director of Conservation Policy and NFU Foundation The Climate Column has covered practices that allow farmers to reduce emissions and sink carbon into their soil, like no-till, as well as methods that help farmers secure the food system by adapting to the changing climate, like intercropping. As the harmful consequences of climate change increase, … Read More
By Tom Driscoll, Director of NFU Foundation and Conservation Policy The market for local and regional food is an important one for beginning producers. A January 2015 report to Congress issued by U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Economic Research Service (ERS) notes that “producer participation in local food systems is growing, and the value of local food sales…appears to be … Read More
By Tom Driscoll, Director of NFU Foundation and Conservation Policy Here on the Climate Column, we have discussed the climate benefits that can be achieved through extending crop rotations. A longer rather than shorter rotation can mitigate erosion if the rotation reduces or eliminates time that soil lays bare; assist with pathogen, pest and weed … Read More
By Natalie Grote, NFU Intern The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) offers both direct ownership loans as well as guarantees for ownership loans from private banks. Direct loans have lower income requirements and generally do not require as extensive farm practice as private loans. Additionally, unlike most private lenders, FSA will work … Read More
By Tom Driscoll, Director of NFU Foundation and Conservation Policy On the Climate Column, we have discussed many conservation practices, such as cover crops and stripcropping, that help farmers mitigate climate change, either by reducing emissions related to farming or by storing carbon in the soil. Many of these practices not only cut carbon emissions, but they … Read More