FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE September 8, 2020 Contact: Hannah Packman, 303-819-8737 hpackman@nfudc.org WASHINGTON – As a global pandemic and extreme weather events batter an already weak agricultural economy, hundreds of farmers, ranchers, and rural residents will gather online next week to speak directly with their elected representatives and administration officials as part of National Farmers Union’s (NFU) virtual … Read More
By Hannah Packman, NFU Communications Director The farm economy was weak long before the pandemic. For years, chronic overproduction has severely depressed commodity prices. Global trade disputes that eroded export markets certainly didn’t help, nor did corporate control of the agriculture industry. But new pandemic-related disruptions have pushed down prices even lower than they were before – so much so … Read More
By Jenny Hopkinson, NFU Senior Government Relations Representative It seems everyone in Washington is talking about agriculture’s role in combatting climate change. Across the government, officials are embracing the need for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and improving soil health – both of which are key for addressing the climate crisis. This summer, there was a … Read More
By Brittany Olson, Wisconsin Farmers Union Member This piece originally ran in the September/October issue of Wisconsin Farmers Union News and is available for distribution. Learn more about the Rural Voices project at www.wisconsinfarmersunion.com/rural-voices or on the WFU blog. Even though my days as a farm journalist are getting farther and farther behind me in … Read More
By Hannah Packman, NFU Communications Director Climate change is not a future or hypothetical problem – year after year, farmers and ranchers across the country are enduring more frequent and extreme weather events and natural disasters. This year has been no different. In California, dozens of fires have burned through hundreds of thousands of acres, destroying farm … Read More
By Billy Mitchell, NFU FSMA Training Coordinator The term “urban farming” evokes images of gleaming greenhouses scattered across New York rooftops, shipping containers full of greens in Charleston, South Carolina, or raised beds in the shadow of the Oakland A’s stadium. But in small rural towns, some farmers are adopting practices that are hallmarks of … Read More
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE August 21, 2020 Contact: Hannah Packman, 303-819-8737 hpackman@nfudc.org WASHINGTON – Several months after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth determined that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) had improperly issued small refinery exemptions (SREs) under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), the agency revealed that it has 98 pending requests for … Read More
By Hannah Packman, NFU Communications Director The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) has been experiencing financial issues for many years, but dwindling mail volume during the pandemic has made matters worse, severely cutting into the agency’s revenue. Unlike most other government agencies, which are funded by taxpayer money, USPS funds itself with revenue from postage and postal service. Though the … Read More
By Hannah Packman, NFU Communications Director According to new analysis published this week by NBC News, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has disproportionately helped certain kinds of farmers more than others with its Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP). The publication asserts that the agency “favored large, industrialized farms over smaller, diversified ones, provided loopholes … Read More
By Hannah Packman, NFU Communications Director Hurricane-force winds tore through the Midwest this week, leaving a trail of destruction in its wake. The storm, known as a derecho, passed from South Dakota to Ohio, knocking out power for more than a million people, blowing down trees, damaging buildings and grain bins, and flattening crops. In … Read More