Good Food from Healthy Farms
Industry News
It’s Cold Out There Folks
Feb 11th
In the same way that the below-average temperatures in the US in December devastated much of Florida’s citrus crop, a deep freeze a week ago in Mexico – the worst in over 50 years – has taken its toll on supplies of tomatoes, peppers, squash and other warm-season crops. Certain items like lettuce, spinach and salad mix will also be in short supply as California now has to supply pretty much everyone in this country (and beyond). Pricing on green beans went up three-fold in the past week, and the story is pretty much the same across the board.
It’s going to be a challenge over the coming weeks to find value items and we worry about availability generally. We will do our best to communicate any changes due to supply issues and to find a good mix of items to fill out the boxes.
We’re not yet forced to eat turnips year-round, but is this a sign of things to come? Some of us hope so…
A few special items next week:
- 1/2 pound cartons of Strawberries are available at the bargain price of $2.50
- Crenshaw melons at $4.50 each
- Ruby Crescent Fingerling Potatoes at $3.25 for a 1.5 pound bag
- Broccoli at $2.00 per bunch
Below is a preview of the standard box contents for this upcoming week.
If you have an order scheduled for this upcoming week, you will receive an email Saturday morning at 2am notifying you that the web store has been opened.
If you need to make any changes to your subscription, schedule a vacation or make a payment, please click here.
Sincerely,
The Terra Organics Team
Organic Farming Cost-Share Program At Risk
Feb 4th
Federal spending cuts proposed by some members of Congress could eliminate a program popular among organic farmers.
THE DETAILS: The Republican Study Committee, a group of 175 House Republicans that tend to vote more conservatively than other members of their party, published the “Spending Reduction Act of 2011.” The proposed spending cuts include the elimination of the National Organic Certification Cost-Share Program, a program set up to reimburse farmers up to 75 percent of the costs required to pay for organic certification. The proposed cuts to the National Organic Certification Cost-Share Program are the only cuts to the agriculture funding in the bill, with the exception of $14 million in cuts to the USDA Sugar program, designed to keep domestic sugar prices lower than those of sugar imports.
FIND OUT MORE (www.rodaleinstitute.com)
Monsanto Squeaks One By Organics
Jan 28th
Some unfortunate news today in what looks like Monstanto’s passing of approval for GMO Alfalfa with the USDA.
An informative article over at the Huffington Post has the details: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ronnie-cummins/the-organic-elite-surrend_b_815346.html
All About Mexican Organics
Jan 27th
Lola Milholland wrote an excellent article about farming in Mexico and specifically Mexican Organics for PCC Natural Markets. Learn more about what our neighbors down south grow and their food safety regulations. Truly an excellent read.
Take a look: http://www.pccnaturalmarkets.com/sc/1101/sc1101-mexican-organics.html
A Balanced Food Modernization Act Passes
Dec 2nd
The big news this week comes from our nation’s capital, where the Senate voted 73 to 25 in favor of Senate Bill S510, the first comprehensive food safety reform in this country in nearly 30 years. While the final language of the Food Modernization Act is still subject to the reconciliation process, it is expected that a bill will be on the president’s desk for his signature before the end of the year.
In the end, the Senate did a good job of balancing the need for increased regulation while preserving the viability of small farms and consumer choice. At odds was the issue of size: Is a one-size-fits-all approach sensible when it comes to regulation? Are larger farms somehow more responsible or susceptible to incidences of food contamination and the spread of foodborne illnesses?
The truth remains that there exists a risk no matter where you get your food. Through more effective regulation of large farms (those responsible for sickening hundreds or thousands at a time) and the preservation of consumer choice at local markets, the Senate has done a good job of balancing the need for greater food safety assurances and the competing interests of big ag and small farms.
Sincerely,
Dan
Update: Tester-Hagan Amendment – Vote YES to Support Terra and Tahoma
Nov 17th
Senator Jon Tester of Montana
Background
You may remember our post in September about the Tester Amendment. The Tester Amendment refers to a bill called the Food Safety Modernization Act (S. 510). In a nutshell, S.510 places stricter regulations on farms that process their crops. The issue arises with smaller farms and facilities as the bill makes it more difficult for your favorite small farm products to get into stores and your kitchen. Those small farms will also be forced to pay additional fees for required regulations and tests.
The Tester Amendment exempts those small farm/facilities with incomes under $500,000 and allows them to continue their operations while putting the necessary checks on big agriculture producers/farms.
The Problem in Washington
Since we last updated you, the Senate has voted 74 to 25 in favor of the cloture vote for The Food Modernization Act. This means it could move forward to a final vote by the end of the week.
At the moment, support for the Tester-Hagan Amendment is unclear and possibly even absent. According to a Democracy Now alert:
“We’re hearing that some Senators still have not made up their minds or even worse, some are waffling in their support for the Tester-Hagan and Manager’s Amendments, which will help protect farmers who sell their produce or goods locally to farmers markets, customers, stores and restaurants from excessive regulations that could harm their ability to compete and even survive.”
Even food experts Michael Pollan and Eric Schlosser are calling for action in supporting the Tester Amendment:
“S.510 is the most important food safety bill in a generation. The Tester amendment will make it even more effective, helping to ensure food safety while protecting small farmers and producers. We both think this is the right thing to do,” said Michael Pollan and Eric Schlosser.
How You Can Help
It’s critical you show your support for the Tester-Hagan Amendment today. Washington is on the move, and very close to a decision on this. With your support we can ensure small farms like Tahoma Farms and distributors like Terra Organics are able to sustain their businesses without the fees and roadblocks included in this unbalanced act.
STEP 1: Call Senators Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell and let them know you support the Tester-Hagen Amendment.
You may be surprised, but giving your Senators a call makes a serious difference in how they act. Calling in is the easiest and best way to help make the Tester-Hagen Amendment happen.
Senator Patty Murray
(202) 224-2621
Senator Maria Cantwell
(202) 224-3441
STEP 2: Share this with your friends and family
Terra Organics and Tahoma Farms needs all the support it can get in helping to pass this critical amendment. Explain the importance of the Tester-Hagen amendment to friends and family and urge them to make the same call to their own State Senators.
Thank you, as always, for your support! We, at Terra Organics, love being able to provide you and your family with the best quality, small farm grown, organic produce and hope to be able to continue to do so in the same way that we already are.
Resources:
Food and Ag Groups Rally Against Tester Amendment
Stand Up for Small Farmers
Help Support Family Farms, Support the Tester Amendment
Sep 15th
The bill
The Food Safety Modernization Act (S. 510), a bill which will place stricter regulations on farms that process their crops, is on its way to the Senate floor. In many ways, with additional safety protocols, the bill situates food as a security concern and allows the government more control over food distribution and production.
The bad
While placing stricter restrictions on crop processing isn’t inherently bad as it helps to crack down on corporate offenders, the bill could have seriously damaging ramifications to small to mid-size farms and small food processing facilities who market their products direct to consumers, stores or restaurants within their region. That means, some of the small farm products you love will have a much harder time getting into stores and your kitchen. Those small farms will also be forced to pay additional fees for required regulations and tests.
Further, smaller farms are what make-up a healthy regional agriculture system, and S.510 could seriously damage the prosperity of these farms/facilities and thus hinder the health and sustainability of our agriculture. If small farms are required to live up to the same regulations as the corporate producers, because those big brands have more resources, it becomes easier for them to take over the market and hurt our agricultural diversity. That loss of diversity is detrimental to the growing local movement and whole concept of sustainable agriculture in the United States.
The solution
Senator Jon Tester (D-MT) has sponsored an amendment that would exempt those small farm/facilities with incomes under $500,000. This provides our local farmers with the freedom to continue to provide their products under the existing safety regulations. That doesn’t mean these small farmers and any less safe, just that they will not be subject to the weight of mass regulation and can continue to provide unique product to their region.
Tester frames his amendment well in a press release:
“Let’s face it, dangerous food-borne outbreaks don’t start with family agriculture. Food produced on that scale shouldn’t be subject to the same expensive federal regulations as some big factory that mass produces food for the entire country.”
Please, help support family farms by supporting the Tester Amendment.
How you can help
Call your Senators today and ask them to support the Tester Amendment.
- Go to Congress.org and type in your zip code.
- Click on your Senator’s name, and then on the contact tab for their phone number. You can also call the Capitol Switchboard and ask to be directly connected to your Senator’s office: 202-224-3121.
- Once connected ask to speak to the legislative staff person responsible for agriculture. If they are unavailable leave a voice mail message. Be sure to include your name and phone number.
The message is simple. “I am a constituent of Senator___________ and I am calling to ask him/her to support the Tester Amendment and to include the Tester language in the Manager’s Amendment to the food safety bill. The Tester Amendment will exempt small farm and food facilities and farmers who direct market their products to consumers, stores or restaurants. We need a food safety bill that cracks down on corporate bad actors without erecting new barriers to family farms and the growing healthy food movement. Our continuing economic recovery demands that we preserve these market opportunities for small and mid-sized family farms.
Thank you for your support!
Resources:
Learn more about how you can help
Humpty Dumpty
Aug 19th
On one end of the spectrum, you have flocks of two to three hens, kept in your or your neighbor’s backyard, where the one dozen eggs produced each week is enough to feed the family that cares for the chickens.
On the other end of the spectrum is an egg factory in the middle of Iowa, where millions of birds lay millions of eggs per day (32 million egg cartons recalled times 12 eggs per carton divided by 90 days of production equals 4,266,666 eggs per day where the average hen lays one egg per day).
It’s hard to imagine how far and how fast we got away from decentralized and local production of food. The recent recall by Wright County Egg has now reached 17 states (including Washington) and the number of reported cases of salmonella linked to the eggs is over 2,000.
Nationally, only 0.4% of all food purchased by consumers comes direct from the farmer. We’re working with you to grow this number, and as our distribution network grows so does our ability to keep local farmland in production, plant heirloom seeds and raise heritage breeds of animals, keep dollars in our community, and, not least of all, deliver incredibly fresh, seasonal fruits and vegetables.
If you are free on Sunday, please take a drive out to Tahoma Farms, at 21108 Orville Rd E, Orting. We will be there from 2 to 6 pm. There will be guided farm tours at 2:30 and 3:30, and a potluck dinner at 5:00. We hope you can join us!
Greenwashing & Other Fine Tales
Aug 6th
We have the first in a new series of podcasts posted on our blog for those interested in hearing an impromptu conversation about McDonalds, Wal-Mart, sustainability and how local food production, and Terra Organics, fits into the mix.
There’s also a graphic that I’ve been holding onto for a while, and it now seems timely to share it.
The subsidy regime pits commodity growers against vegetable and fruit growers, and McDonalds and others buy fillers and subsidized meat, dairy, and grains at an artificially low cost. The foods that should be accessible to the least healthy amongst us have little to no price supports. So long as corn syrup and factory meat and dairy dominate the $60 billion a year farm program in this country, McDonalds will always dominate the way food is produced and consumed in this country, no matter how many new farmers markets are springing up around the country.
But, of course, that doesn’t mean we can give up the fight.
Who Owns Organic?
Mar 29th
Unbeknown to many a healthy eater, from 1995 to 2007 a lot of the bright organic brands of tomorrow became subsidiaries of the “big name” brands of yesterday. Thanks to Philip H. Howard, we now have that in a visual form.
In 1995 the organic processing industry was relatively ‘fragmented’, as indicated by the 81 independent organic brands shown at the beginning of the animation. By 2007, however, all but 15 of these were acquired by multinational food processors, many of which also introduced organic versions of their mainstream brands. Note the extent to which investment firms played a role in this process of consolidation by acquiring one or more organic brands before selling them to multinational processors.
View video here.
