By Robert Parkhurst, Agriculture Greenhouse Gas Markets Director at Environmental Defense Fund With international trade pressures, low commodity prices, and unpredictable weather patterns, it’s a tough time for agriculture right now. But farmers are now and have always been innovative and resilient – and very resourceful. That’s why a new opportunity might be of interest to … Read More
By Jimmy Dula, NFU Intern Pricing has been one of the most difficult ideas in farming for me to wrap my head around. Estimating cost of production can be difficult in a small but highly diversified operation. Most farmers don’t keep track of how many hours were spent weeding and managing rows of carrots versus rows … Read More
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE June 1, 2017 Contact: Andrew Jerome, 202-314-3106 [email protected] WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump announced today that the U.S. will withdraw from the historic Paris Agreement, an accord among 192 nations to combat the potentially devastating impacts of climate change. Echoing concerns raised in a recent letter to President Trump, National Farmers Union … Read More
June 1, 2017 By London Muegge, Education Intern Contact: Chelsea Matzen, 202-554-1600 [email protected] The Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) was signed into law on January 4, 2011 by President Obama, and is the largest reform to our country’s food safety laws since 1938. Its purpose is to ensure our food supply is safe by putting … Read More
By Skylar Schneider, NFU Executive Assistant Nearly 100 years ago, Congress passed the Packers and Stockyards Act of 1921, which was written to both address abuses by major livestock and poultry meatpackers as well as ensure effective competition within the market. The act prohibits unfair practices and undue preferences, and aims to shield producers from anti-competitive … Read More
By Chris Holman, Co-Owner/Operator of Nami Moon Farms As beginning producers, what sorts of obstacles do we create in order to keep doing what we’re doing? There were plenty of them, but today let’s talk about one that will kill you and your farm faster than almost any other—price. When we started out at Nami … Read More
By Tom Giessel, NFU Historian Owen Franklin Dornblazer was the 11th person to join The Farmers Educational and Cooperative Union of America in 1902. He lived to the age of 94 and was active in organizational and membership work until the final few months of his life. At age 85, addressing the 1926 NFU convention, … Read More
Costco Refuses to Discuss Poultry Contracts LINCOLN, NE. As a result of Costco’s Wholesale Corporation CEO W. Craig Jelinek failure to accept or respond to an invitation from the Organization for Competitive Markets and Nebraska Farmers Union to sit down and discuss concerns with poultry contract provisions offered to area farmers, OCM and NeFU … Read More
By Hannah Packman, NFU Communications Coordinator Climate science, a multidisciplinary field that addresses the causes and effects of climate change, predicts future trends, and establishes mitigation and adaptation practices, is increasingly vital as extreme temperatures and erratic weather become more common. We all benefit from climate change research, but it is particularly critical for family … Read More
By Lura Roti, South Dakota Farmers Union A $200 scholarship from the Davison County Pork Producers in 1984 launched Brad Greenway on an agricultural advocacy journey which has put him in front of thousands of consumers coast-to-coast and around the world to share his story. “That scholarship got me involved,” explains the third-generation pork producer. Brad’s engagement … Read More