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Following the USDA’s Reorganization (Regularly Updated)
Following the release of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) reorganization plans in the summer of 2025, the agency announced reorganization and restructuring efforts around staff and facilities across some of its mission areas. With a slated completion date at the end of the 2026 calendar year, these efforts and associated staffing reductions have recently accelerated—even in the face of industry concerns and public pushback.
This blog will be regularly updated to track the USDA’s reorganization, relocation, and restructuring actions.
Source: OPM EHRI Status -
DC Fly-In Debrief: A Q&A with Tim Schacht of Ohio Till Farmstead
We are thankful that Tim Schacht, of Ohio Till Farmstead, joined us in DC for the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition’s annual fly-in this February. The week was spent in community with farmers and advocates from across the country. Together, 150 farmers, ranchers, and food system advocates had about 150 meetings with members of Congress, their staff, and USDA representatives.
We met with Congressman Dave Taylor, staff from the offices of Congresswoman Brown, Congresswoman Kaptur, and Senator Moreno, and also had a group meeting with Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) officials at the USDA, talking about the new Regenerative Pilot Program, technical assistance, and organics being recognized in conservation programs.
We recently had an opportunity to chat with Tim about the trip. Here’s what he had to say:
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2025 Changes and Successes
2025 has been a year of constant and often unprecedented change. It brought about both challenges and opportunities for the growers and eaters in OEFFA’s community. Many farmers are still reeling from the impacts of this year’s federal funding freeze and the lack of a sorely needed new farm bill. Yet, there is also a sense of careful optimism stemming from the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) movement and its focus on natural food and soil health.
This year has also brought about uncertainty and transition for OEFFA and the work of our Policy Program. Still, there’s much to celebrate as we prepare to close out the year.
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Curbing Consolidation this Holiday Season
We are in the thick of the holiday season, and over two-thirds of those who celebrate with a meal have reported that food prices will impact their plans. Holiday staples like hams, green beans, and cranberry sauce likely cost more this year, yet our farmers only get pennies on the dollar of goods sold.
Year after year, corporate consolidation has weakened our agricultural system and threatened our producers. Anti-competitive markets and increasing corporate control are bipartisan issues, and solutions have emerged from both sides of the aisle.
But curbing these problems and supporting our farmers will require real political will from our legislators and our community to combat some of the most powerful corporations on the planet. Until then, we can all take steps to avoid contributing to consolidation, especially around the holidays.
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Cross Post: Keeping Farmers on the Land
Photo credit: Erin Larson via Unsplash Editor’s Note: This blog post was written by the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC), of which OEFFA is a member, and first appeared on their site here.
The National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC) traces its earliest roots to the farm crisis of the 1980s, when cycles in the global economy and federal agricultural policy combined to push farmers losing their farms into the national spotlight. The 330,000 farm families who lost their farms between 1978 and 1992 were, unfortunately, not the last. The total number of farms has continued to steadily decrease since then, with the loss of mid-sized farms at a particularly concerning rate.
Within the past couple of years, there has been mounting evidence suggesting a tipping point for farmers and ranchers not unlike that of the 1980s. Today, high production costs, unstable markets, and low crop prices driven by uncertain export markets and overproduction have converged to create an economic climate in which farmers’ livelihoods are threatened. Earlier this year, hundreds of farmers – reportedly more than 500 – attended a single meeting to ask for help. Moments of farm crisis – like the one we are in now – stand out from the decades-long drumbeat of farm losses across agriculture.
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Government Shutdown and Federal Challenges: Impacts on Our Farmers
Last updated on November 13, 2025
We’re officially out of the 43-day-long government shutdown, the longest in history.
We got here because Congress did not pass its annual 12 appropriations bills by the end of the fiscal year for the government (September 30). The House passed a continuing resolution on September 19; however, the Senate has voted on this legislation 14 times, and it has continued to not pass.
The Ohio Ecological Food and Farm Association (OEFFA) is a community of sustainable and organic farmers, handlers, producers, and consumers. The challenges faced by those in our network are unique to diversified and usually small or mid-scale farms. Therefore, the recent government shutdown, USDA staffing changes, future healthcare premium increases, and other events have specific implications on the businesses of these land stewards.
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OEFFA Policy Fellow Launches New Guide: ‘Navigating the Agricultural Landscape’
Jennifer Lumpkin lives and grows in Cleveland, Ohio. Drawing from her experiences as a food systems advocate and beginning farmer, she has prepared an all-encompassing guide as our second OEFFA Policy Fellow.
Navigating the Agricultural Landscape provides a firsthand look at the processes involved in communicating with agricultural departments, better understanding farmer support programs, and advocating within various levels of government.
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The Vital Services Provided by OEFFA’s Sustainable Agriculture Educators
Guest post written by former OEFFA Sustainable Agriculture Educator, Johnnie Speicher. Originally published in the Summer 2025 OEFFA Newsletter.
OEFFA has long been an important partner, resource, and voice for the sustainable agriculture community. One of the most frequently consulted positions at OEFFA is that of the Sustainable Agriculture Educator, or SAE. Thanks in part to greater investment in sustainable agriculture from the federal government, OEFFA has been able to expand the SAE positions and the support provided to our agricultural community.
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Unpacking the MAHA Report
In mid-May, the White House released “The Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) Report.” The report makes proclamations linking food and chemical corporations with our country’s health crises, particularly those impacting children. It sounds the alarm about corporate influence over our food system, the dangers of pesticides, and the increasing concerns brought about by environmental toxins, to name just a few.
Read on to learn what the MAHA Report says about agriculture and what we see as potential implications of its publication.
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CAFOs: A Q&A with OEFFA Member Emily Kichler
We are so thankful for our vast number of policy member leaders who interact with us on a regular basis. Emily Kichler recently reached out with her research on CAFO systems that we wanted to share with our OEFFA network.
Emily Kichler is a cook, a student of environmental policy at Virginia Wesleyan, and a long-time food system reform advocate—from WWOOFing and learning about different methods of sustainable farming around the country, to work in food assistance, to composting legislation advocacy, to farm policy advocacy with OEFFA and Farm Action. Emily is an active participant in the OEFFA Policy Caucuses and joins us at the Statehouse for advocacy days.
We had the opportunity to chat with Emily about CAFOs. Read on for her take.
FARM POLICY MATTERS