Call for a Resilient, Equitable, and Sustainable 2024 Farm Bill!
On September 11, our partners at the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC) delivered a letter to Congressional leaders with support from 1,096 groups across the country—including 43 sign-ons from Ohio alone!
The purpose of this letter was to affirm the need for a farm bill to be passed in 2024, without it coming at the expense of policies that address hunger, public health, farmers, workers, and the environment.
Since the 2018 Farm Bill, or the Agricultural Improvement Act of 2018, was passed, a lot has changed across our nation. Against the backdrop of an increasingly disruptive and changing climate, the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in the illness and death of thousands of food workers. There have also been historic agricultural investments from the Inflation Reduction Act, along with a long-overdue racial justice reckoning. These events have unveiled and attempted to repair the fragility of our farm and food system—impacting everything from the food and nutrition security of millions to the livelihoods of farmers, ranchers, food and farm workers, and countless others.
The next farm bill should address the needs of modern food and farm systems by reflecting these changes in society and across our food, farm, and rural and urban communities. While we have submitted a letter alongside other organizations and groups, we want our grassroots base to be involved as well. Help us put pressure on members of Congress by sending a direct message to your legislators!
Desiring a Transformational Farm Bill
A 2024 Farm Bill must invest in all farmers and ranchers, strengthen our food system, build a fair and accessible farm safety net, improve climate resilience, and meaningfully support workers and the next generation of farmers. It must make transformational progress:
- Against food insecurity and hunger – protecting and strengthening the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) – while simultaneously supporting nutrition and access to healthy food.
- On long overdue investments in foods and farm workers to keep our supply chains secure, vibrant, and resilient.
- To invest strongly in agricultural research and conservation programming.
- To double down on the historic climate investments from the Inflation Reduction Act, but not undermine legislative direction to target high value climate practices.
- To prioritize investments that support individuals and communities who historically have been and, in some cases, continue to be underserved by current federal food and farm policy.
We believe that the 118th Congress could complete a new farm bill this year – but expediency must not come at the expense of policies that address hunger, public health, farmers, workers, and the environment. Visit our action page to join this historic push for a resilient, equitable, and sustainable farm bill!