from the Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development |
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JAFSCD is the world’s only community-supported journal. JAFSCD content is open access (free) thanks to the generous support of our shareholders: the JAFSCD Shareholder Consortium, Library Shareholders, a growing number of Individual Shareholders, and our six JAFSCD Partners: |
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Farm policy for organic producers JAFSCD peer-reviewed article by Sara Jean Whelan, Duncan Orlander, Julia Balsam, and Carolyn Dimitri, PhD (all at New York University) |
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Ithaca, NY -- Coordinating federal agency requirements — the Organic System Plan for organic certification, best practices for conservation program participation, and good farming practices for crop insurance — would reduce the burden on organic producers. Any efforts to improve the farm programs need to be examined or evaluated in order to ensure that the changes are improving the programs for organic producers. Organic farmers are eligible to participate in several U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) farm programs that focus on conservation, risk management, and the certification cost share. While the Organic Cost Share is widely used, many organic farmers do not enroll in conservation programs or purchase crop insurance.
The underutilization of federal farm programs by organic producers is well known in the organic community, but the body of knowledge lacks systematic evidence about the rationale for not applying for or using farm programs. Using qualitative data collected through structured interviews, the authors find that many organic producers want to participate in these programs. Many are successful, but others face institutional, cultural, and programmatic barriers that prevent them from participating.
In a new JAFSCD article published today, Fitting a square peg in a round hole: Applying U.S. farm policy to organic farms, authors Whelan, Orlander, Balsam, and Dimitri present findings from a research study that examined farmer participation in the following farm programs: the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP), crop insurance, and the Organic Certification Cost Share Program.
KEY FINDINGS
Despite the potential contributions that federal farm programs could make to support organic farms, numerous implementation problems prevent organic farmers from fully benefiting from conservation and risk management support. The authors hypothesize that the most crucial problem is trying to fit organic farms into existing programs that were designed for nonorganic farms.
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR POLICY, PRACTICE, AND RESEARCH The authors recommend that the USDA train a small number of specialized, highly trained crop insurance and conservation agents with organic farming expertise. This group of agents would work nationally to facilitate the application process with organic farmers, and to support farmers once they are enrolled in conservation programs or after purchasing crop insurance. The utility of the organic cost share program would be improved if the funding targeted small-scale operations, as well as beginning farmers and handlers, and if the application for funding were automatic once an operation is certified. SHARE ON YOUR SOCIALS
Why don’t more organic farmers participate in USDA farm programs? It can be like trying to fit a square peg in a round hole. Interviews by @NYUniversity @carolyndimitri and co-authors shed light on farmers’ and handlers’ issues with participating. #USDA #organicfarmers #organiccertification Read the @JAFSCD article for free: https://doi.org/10.5304/jafscd.2024.134.002
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Photo above: USDA Natural Resource Conservation Service Chief Terry Cosby (at right) visited EarthDance Organic Farm in St. Louis, Missouri, and met with founder and CEO Molly Rockamann (at left) to discuss how Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) funds have aided her high-tunnel operation. USDA photo by Josh Colligan, 3/23/2023; public domain.
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FREE WEBINAR — MON., SEPT. 9 — 1:00–2:00 pm EDT
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Leveraging Extension and University Engagement: Developing and Implementing Novel Projects Using Transdisciplinary Approaches
Join us for a webinar looking at how land-grant university administration can support faculty and staff in adopting transdisciplinary approaches and leverage the power of engagement. We’ll hear from top university administrators about the challenges of such work and the opportunities to overcome them, and discuss how to navigate multifaceted projects that support inclusivity and diverse perspectives to address the complex challenges facing food and agricultural systems today.
Monday, Sept. 9, 2024, 1:00–2:00 pm EDT
Register here
This webinar is part of the Transdisciplinary Approaches Webinar series, which examines strategies for implementing transdisciplinary approaches, team-building, and overcoming challenges to encourage the adoption of and training in transdisciplinary systems. You can watch recordings from past webinars in the series here.
Speakers: - Marshall Stewart (Moderator) Kansas State University Executive Vice President for External Engagement and Chief of Staff
- Chancellor Robert Jones University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Chancellor
- Wendy Powers Washington State University Dean, College of Agricultural, Human, and Natural Resource Sciences - Jay Akridge Purdue University Trustee Chair in Teaching and Learning Excellence and Professor of Agricultural Economics |
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An excerpt from the column:
Loss of community is inevitable whenever economic self-interest is given priority over common interests and social connectedness. As societies develop economically and economies grow, personal relationships are systematically replaced by impersonal market transactions. This depersonalization is necessary to achieve the economic efficiency of industrial economic development. People buy and sell rather than swap work or share. Those who lament the loss of community and sense of common purpose are often maligned as nostalgic or longing for 'good times that never were.' . . . But . . . there is no way to live well without family, friends, or community.
Read the entire column for free in the fall issue of JAFSCD. John Ikerd has contributed Economic Pamphleteer columns to JAFSCD since its inaugural issue in 2010. See all of his columns here.
Image above: A mural at the 3rd annual farm festival at Three Part Harmony Farm in Washington, D.C., USA. Photo taken in 2015 by Jesse Alexander and shared via Flickr.
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News from JAFSCD Partner the University of Vermont
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Presidential Postdoctoral Fellowship in Agroecology and Biodiversity at the School for Environment and Sustainability (SEAS)
We are seeking candidates with a strong natural science background who are doing research at this intersection, including identifying how agrobiodiversity across scales can support wild species or how to manage biodiversity within agroecosystems to increase their social and ecological sustainability. The postdoc will be housed at SEAS but will be part of the Sustainable Food Systems Initiative, a universitywide initiative of faculty, students, and staff working toward a sustainable and just food system, locally and globally. After one or two years of the postdoc, the position can be turned into a tenure-track position. See the University of Michigan employment site for details.
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