Last week, the House passed a farm bill that not only guts the already unsupported, income-based programs for working families, but also changes the process to establish organic standards thus undermines the integrity of what consumers have previously understood to be “organic”. Additionally, the draft bill creates even more loopholes for Big Ag conglomerates and the pesticide industry (ahem, Monsanto-Bayer!) that continues to compromise public and environmental health by polluting our clean water and food supply (yes, they are getting away with it!).

Please keep posted, as the Senate version of the bill is going to put to the floor soon for a vote. CALL and tell your representatives to keep the aforementioned amendments/policies in the House version out of the final Farm Bill (it’s going to be with us for another FIVE YEARS!). NOW is the time that we have to keep the pressure on. Read more about the current Farm Bill from Civil Eats here. 

Tell the Senate to Pass a Farm Bill That Works

“Costco has updated its pollinator policy in order to further encourage the removal of chlorpyrifos and neonicotinoids from its supply chain. The scope of the policy, first developed in 2016, has been expanded to encourage suppliers of fruits, vegetables, and garden plants to limit the use of non-essential chemicals including these pesticides, as well as to use more eco-friendly methods of pest control.” – Organic Authority

Rodale is Teaming Up with Penn State’s Hospital To Bring Patients Fresh, Natural Medicine

The hospital at St. Luke’s Anderson Campus in Pennsylvania has teamed up with the Rodale Institute to have a working farm that provides fresh produce to the hospital kitchen.

LI Greenmarket is opening a new market location at the Jamaica Medical Center today, June 27th, and every Wednesday through Summer.

Grow Heirlooms: Leveraging Biodiversity For Improved Public and Environmental Health

New Hampshire’s The Concord Monitor featured High Mowing Seeds and ‘breeding’ partner Brent Loy of the University of New Hampshire; spotlighting Loy’s work with melons, summer squash and winter squash including the Marmalade tomato and Smooth Operator summer squash.

Organics Helping Rural Regions Rebound 

Vermont’s representative in the U.S. Senate, Patrick Leahy, was interviewed for a piece about organics in Civil Eats, and spoke to how organic farming can help rural communities like those in our home state of Vermont.

Industrialized Ag in the Back Pockets of Political Legislators

As we depart from the natural (yes, sometimes slow) systems of the environment, we must inevitably face the dirty consequences. Such as is the case in North Carolina, where pollution from Factory Farms (industrialized animal-meat production) is being investigated by local residents and state regulators. Yet without the support of our legislators and immediate action to protect public health and the environment, our communities and ecosystems will continue to suffer.

In this Civil Eats article, investigative journalist Christine Cook, reports that that this battle began last year with the passing of the “Agriculture and Forestry Nuisance Remedies” bill, which  “caps payments in future nuisance suits against commercial hog farms to a sum related to the diminished value of a person’s property—and prohibits them from receiving compensation for damages related to health, quality of life, enjoyment of property, or lost income.Most recently, legislators passed new laws restricting the right to speak up about harm caused by CAFO waste.”