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Washington State Takes Legislative Steps to Legalize Farm Internships
Washington State has become the first state in the country to take legislative steps towards legalizing agricultural internships. The Small Farm Internship Bill completed a very small two year pilot program in just two counties and is now working its way through the house and senate once again as an extended 5 year program in…
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Oregon's Rogue Farm Corps Now Accepting 2012 Participants
Rogue Farm Corps Farms Next internship program provides beginning farmers and ranchers entry-level training in sustainable agriculture. Through an innovative cooperative education program, Farms Next combines hands-on training, classroom learning and farm-based education on a diverse network of commercial family farms in Southern Oregon’s Rogue Valley. Participants in the Farms Next internship program live and…
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Southeastern Farmers to Organize a New Young Farmers Coalition!
A new coalition for young and beginning farmers is springing up in the Southeast, with a kick-off meeting set for March 5th in Athens, GA. The new organization, the Southeastern Young and Beginning Farmers Alliance, will be a resource to connect farmers from across the region and engage in dialogue about what the farming community…
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PASA launches new land leasing program
The Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture (PASA) has just launched the website for their new land leasing program, Farm Lease Connection. The project, which started to take shape in 2009, came out of a perceived need of young, aspiring farmers in southeastern Pennsylvania. They were coming out of internships and apprenticeship experiences and looking for…
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A Partnership: Farmers might not choose one, but they could have one anyways.
Farmers who want to work together to make a profit might risk their personal assets if they form a general partnership. General partners are jointly and severally liable for the business debt. The problem is that a group of farmers can form a partnership without ever realizing they’ve just taken on that liability. What’s the…
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Chicago's New Rooftop Farm – The Urban Canopy
A new rooftop farm project by The Urban Canopy aims to show how rooftops can be used as small farms throughout Chicago to grow fresh fruits and veggies organically and sustainably. Along with farming vacant lots–or even entire abandoned buildings–rooftop farming is a vital part of the growing urban agriculture movement to recreate a local…
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USDA Announces Value-Added Producer Grants
Earlier this month, the USDA announced the awarding of over $40 million in grants through the Value-Added Producer Grant Program. The funds went to 298 recipients in 44 states. In announcing them, Agriculture Deputy Secretary Kathleen Merrigan drew a connection between the grants and President Obama’s call for promoting American jobs and economic growth, but…
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New Campaign Urges Labeling of Genetically Modified Foods
A new campaign, Just Label It, has been launched to require that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) label foods from genetically modified organisms (GMOs). An accompanying video, Labels Matter, was also just released to educate people about the risks of eating genetically modified foods and to encourage people to fight to know what’s…
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FoodCorps Opens Applications for 2012 School Food Change-Makers
FoodCorps, a national organization that works to address food issues in underserved communities, has called for applications for its second annual class of service members. The organization will be hiring up to one hundred people for positions in 12 states across the country. The 2012 corps will work full-time for one year in school food…