The last year and half has brought many changes to the farming community. One of the biggest has been the wave of mergers sweeping through the major corporations many farmers rely upon for seeds and chemicals. Two major mergers have been completed (Dow & DuPont and Syngenta & ChemChina). One more is still pending: Monsanto & Bayer. The U.S. Department of Justice and many state Attorneys General are reviewing that merger and looking for farmer input. Now is your Read More …
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE January 23, 2018 Media Contacts: Chelsea Davis, 573-808-3553, chelsea@farmaction.us Angela Huffman, 614-390-7552, ahuffman@competitivemarkets.com Farm Groups Call on Missouri Lawmakers to Make Changes Following Report on Struggle of Family Farmers and Rural Communities Jefferson City, MO – Today at a legislative briefing at the Missouri State Capitol, the Organization for Competitive Markets (OCM) released a report outlining the dire state of Missouri family farmers and rural communities. Pointing to Missouri’s rural poverty rate which is now Read More …
In the late 1970s, Walter Goldschmidt hypothesized that rural communities are undermined by the presence of industrial farm operations, which lead to rural communities that are less likely to have a strong middle class, quality public services, and robust community participation. Increased concentration in agribusiness and farms supports the Goldschmidt Hypothesis, as many rural communities across Missouri struggle to support their local economies. Missouri’s rural poverty rate is 30.9% higher than its urban poverty rate. Agribusiness firms that Read More …
Take Action The Virginia General Assembly is considering legislation which would quadruple the state’s beef checkoff tax on cattle producers and turn over control of those dollars to the trade and lobbying organization, Virginia Cattlemen’s Association. The bill is SB 374 (Senator Chafin-R) and HB 1348 (Delegate Weber-R). Please contact your representatives and urge them to oppose this abusive power grab by big agribusiness interests. Virginia Senate Directory Virginia Delegate Directory Look Up Your Legislator Background SB 374/HB 1348: Cattle Industry Read More …
Ahead of President Trump’s speech to the American Farm Bureau, farmers suing the Administration for rolling back critical protections for family farms issued the following statement: “President Trump’s administration has turned its back on the very farmers and rural communities that helped elect him president. Instead of upholding his promise to be our champion, the administration sided with multinational corporations to roll back rules designed to prevent corporations from engaging in unfair and deceptive practices against family farms,” said Read More …
Charleston-Gazette Mail By Max Garland Staff writer An organization headed in part by a Pendleton County farmer has filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Agriculture for rolling back rules that would have given contract farmers more legal muscle against the meat companies they work for. It’s not the first time Mike Weaver, who raises chickens under contract for poultry giant Pilgrim’s Pride on his farm near Fort Seybert, has called out issues in the contract farming business. He Read More …
What can we as eaters do to encourage a better food system? In today’s broken corporate-controlled food system, more and more people want to know where their food comes from and how it’s produced. The biggest industrial food companies are well aware of this fact and clearly see how consumer demand has shifted towards local sourcing of food over other attributes like antibiotic and hormone free. The world’s biggest food companies, including meat packers, processors, food distributors and Read More …
Building on OCM’s past 19 years of unwavering commitment to the fight for economic justice for America’s family farmers and ranchers, 2017 has proven to be one of the most impactful years yet. Here is your year in review. Fighting to End Big Ag’s Abuse of Family Farmers’ Checkoff Tax Dollars We worked with Senators Mike Lee (R-UT) and Cory Booker (D-NJ) to reintroduce federal legislation that would curb the rampant abuses of the $800,000,000 in commodity checkoff Read More …