Call Today to Support Regional Food Systems 

Thanks to our friends at the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition for information contained in this alert.  The current Farm Bill extension leaves out support for many programs that support regional food systems so critical to bringing regionally and sustainably produced food to our nation's school children.  

Read on for details and call today! 

Thanks!!

Sheilah Davidson

*****

Unless the Senate acts to fix the situation next week, 2013 is on track to be the worst setback for sustainable agriculture in years.  Loans to support local and regional supply chains will dry up. Training opportunities for the next generation of beginning and minority farmers will disappear.  Microloans to the very small businesses that drive economic recovery in rural America will cease.  Organic farming research and cost share funding will be greatly diminished.

What's going on?

When Congress extended the old farm bill on New Year's Eve, they left out dozens of critical sustainable agriculture programs - leaving them stranded without funding for the year!*

On Monday, the Senate will take up its own version of the bill to fund government programs through the rest of 2013 - and the Senate has a chance to restore funding for key sustainable agriculture programs.  But they've got to know these issues matter. 

The House failed to include these priorities in the funding bill it passed this week - the Senate can fix this!

Don't let Congress leave these programs stranded!  Speak out today!

Please call your Senators:

Find their phone numbers here: http://bit.ly/findmySenator

An example message for your Senator is: "I am calling about the Continuing Resolution.  Please tell the Senator to support mandatory funding in the bill for the programs that were stranded in the farm bill extension, including [name a few of the "stranded" programs below that are important to you and your community!]. These programs are important to farmers in Washington, D.C., and they must be funded."

Making a call takes only a few moments - please call right now!

Thanks for all you do!

* Some of the programs currently stranded without funding include:

• Value Added Producer Grant Program
• Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program              
• Rural Microentrepreneur Assistance Program
• Organic Agriculture Research & Extension Initiative
• Outreach & Assistance for Socially Disadvantaged Farmers & Ranchers
• Conservation Reserve - Transition Incentive Program  

  Detail on these programs and other important stranded programs can be found here