FUNDING WILL DROP FOR NEXT FARM BILL

Agriculture lawmakers are on track to have about $130 billion less in funding for the next farm bill than they did when they wrote the last law. The Congressional Budget Office predicts that farm and nutrition programs would cost about $822 billion over a decade, or $679 billion for SNAP and $143 billion for commodity subsidies, crop insurance, conservation and other ag programs. In 2014, the CBO estimated that the final version of the farm bill would cost $956 billion over a decade. Some of the prospective cuts are based on actual program spending results since 2014.

SNAP, for example, cost about $359 billion over the past 5 years, or nearly $32 billion less than originally estimated by the CBO just before the 2014 farm bill was passed.

Source: Politico, 7/5/17, Farm Bill Cuts

Farmer Friday- The Orebed Sugar Shack

Maple syrup is a family tradition for Jeff and Lori Jenness, of The Orebed Sugar Shack, in DeKalb, New York, even the shack itself was built by the Jenness' themselves. 

For years, generations of family connected to the Jenness' would come together to help gather sap from buckets and assist with the production. However as the Jenness’ daughters, who were vital workers to production, began to approach college, it became apparent that the extra help needed to gather from the amount from trees tapped on their property would disappear. Faced to make a decision, to get smaller or grow bigger, the Jenness’ settled on the latter. This decision led to progression from the traditional sap buckets and instead focused on incorporating pipelines. Now there are over 20 miles of these lines webbing together all of the sap from the property, and transporting the liquid right outside of The Orebed Sugar Shack.  

             “We aren’t in it for the money,” Jeff explains amidst laughter. The more you want to get bigger and better, he explains, the more you are willing to spend money on it. “It’s a disease.”

            The Orebed Sugar Shack hosts a maple weekend twice a year where they encourage families to learn about each step that is involved in the creation of maple products. The maple weekends are free of charge and include horse drawn wagons, face paint, an opportunity to see maple syrup created the old fashioned way, coloring contests, chain saw carvings, and free samples. “We sugar everybody up,” explains Jeff. These events aim to teach the behind the scenes of maple production, every step from start to finish, and there is a clear emphasis on children’s education on the process.

Stocked shelves in The Orebed Sugar Shack

             “We’re for the kids, to educate the kids. Cause that’s your future in the business.”  Introducing younger generations to the woods that collect sap is much more than just a learning experience about maple syrup.The exposure encourages kids to learn about native insects, identify tracks left by various animals of the area, and discover how to classify trees.  

            The Jenness’ created these weekends to share their knowledge and products in hopes to ignite interest to help carry on their tradition. When asked what sparked the idea for maple weekends, Lori quickly answers, “to share it.” Many people aren’t aware exactly how much work goes into the process to make pure maple syrup, or how many gallons of sap are required to make one gallon of syrup. “We don’t hide any of it, if they want to know, we’ll show 'em.”

            Even in the off season you can find a variety of maple products stocked in the Sugar Shack. People from everywhere have come to visit, from chemical engineers at NASA interested in the details of production to people from England and the south who are curious about maple syrup production.

The traditional method to make maple syrup shown during Maple Weekends

            Outside of making maple syrup, the Jenness’ are extremely self sufficient. On the property they have no electric bill, due to their 98 solar panels and backup generator, and have a garden that provides them with fresh berries and vegetables. The Jenness’ emphasize that they try to process all their own food and continue to hunt for their own meat. With the occasional run to the store to buy pork or chicken, Jeff recalls that the last time they bought beef was in 2002.

            If you want to know more about The Orebed Sugar Shack, or where to buy their product, you can check out http://orebedmaplesugarshack.com/


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A note from Gloria:

In the spirit of full disclosure, I wanted to let you know that Lori Jenness is my cousin!  So, when intern Jenna picked the Orebed Sugar Shack out of the Local Food Guide as someone she wanted to profile for Farmer Friday, I kind of chuckled, but then thought, "why not?"

Lori's dad and my dad were brothers and along with a couple of other family members owned Crystal Rock Maple Producers in Fowler when we were kids.  So Lori and I grew up the maple business, back in the days when we were not only collecting sap in buckets, but at least some of time, doing it with a horse-drawn gathering wagon.  (Yes, I really am that old.  But Lori is younger!)

It's a joy to celebrate this family tradition with Lori and Jeff every year during the Maple Weekends and to share it with all of you via my work at GardenShare!

Gloria McAdam

            

New book: Big Hunger

To most Americans, the food bank is revered on both the political left and right for its steady work helping to feed the roughly 40 million people who wonder where their next meal will come from. But longtime anti-hunger activist Andy Fisher tells a different story in his new book Big Hunger: The Unholy Alliance Between Corporate America and Anti-Hunger Groups. Fisher writes that food banks and other anti-hunger organizations (as well as federal programs) are far too cozy with big corporations. He suggests that USDA, anti-hunger organizations, and the food industry comprise an “anti-hunger industrial complex” in which anti-hunger groups lobby for federal nutrition aid that USDA distributes so recipients can buy products the food industry sells  (one-sixth of Kraft’s sales are SNAP-related). Fisher also criticizes food banks for their failure to address the root causes of hunger and to perpetuate the problem through just treating its symptoms.

Source: Citylab, 6/13/17, Inescapable Hunger Cycle

CONSERVATIVES SCOLD GOP CONGRESSMAN OVER SNAP

The conservative group Heritage Action scolded House Agriculture Committee Chairman Mike Conaway (R-Texas) this past week for his reticence to cut SNAP.  Conaway is in ongoing discussions with Budget Committee Chairman Diane Black over potential cuts to the SNAP program. Black has twice postponed the release of the budget proposal over conservative demands that further cuts be made to entitlement and welfare programs, such as SNAP. While the budget committee can mandate the level of cuts, it is up to the specific committee chairs to fill in the details. Conaway retorted that Heritage Action has “been advocates for raising the cost of food for the most vulnerable in our society for years, and they’re sticking with that treatment.”

Source: The Hill, 6/29/17, Conservatives Battle Over SNAP

Eat Smart NY Grocery Store Tours

Cooking Matters Store Tours Offered in Canton & Potsdam

Healthy, affordable grocery store tours for SNAP eligible adults 18+ Complete the tour & challenge and receive: Free reusable shopping bag Free recipes Free $10 grocery store gift card Tips on how to shop healthy on a budget *Limited to 1 tour per family some restrictions apply Space is limited RSVP today! 315-379-9192 ext 236 Click Here for Dates and Times

COULD SNAP PURCHASES SOON COME BY DRONE?

Amazon may be moving into the high-end food world with its purchase of Whole Foods, but the online commerce giant may also be going after a share of the roughly $70 billion SNAP market. While SNAP recipients can't currently use their benefits to buy groceries online, it appears increasingly likely that they'll be able to in the not-too-distant future. USDA is preparing to roll out 10 pilots that will allow some SNAP customers to use their EBT cards with online retailers. In January, Amazon was selected as one of the companies to conduct one of the pilots across three states - New York, New Jersey and Maryland - but the company is now going beyond that point. It recently rolled out a special 45% discount on Amazon Prime membership for anyone in the U.S. who has an EBT card, reducing Prime membership from $10.99 to $5.99 per month.  Retailers are watching closely because they see the move as a shrewd way for Amazon to build business with SNAP-eligible customers to capitalize if - or, rather, when - EBT becomes redeemable online.

Source: Politico, 6/28/17, SNAP from Amazon

FOOD INSECURITY DOWN AMONG CHILDREN, BUT STILL HIGH

Rates of children living in households characterized by food insecurity or very low food security have improved since 2014. Nevertheless, in 2015, food insecurity remained unconscionably high, with more than 13 million children in 2015 living in a household characterized by food insecurity—over 1 in 6 children in America. Even more troubling, in 2015 more than 6 million children were food insecure themselves and another half a million children suffered one or more periods during which their food intake was reduced and normal eating patterns were disrupted because the household lacked money and other resources for food. In 22 states, more than 20% of children lived in food insecure households (CT’s rate was 17.6%).

Source: Brookings Institution, 6/19/17, Food Insecurity