Food Safety Modernization Act webinar for farmers next Monday

The Food Safety Modernization Act, or FSMA, is a sweeping overhaul of federal food safety regulations that affects fruit and vegetable producers significantly. After the release of initial proposed regulations, the US Food and Drug Administration received thousands of public comments and have since revised the proposed rules. Join Farm Credit East’s webinar on Monday, March 9, at 11:00 AM to find out the FSMA’s current status and how it will affect your business. Participation is free.

Wesley Kline, of Rutgers Cooperative Extension, will present this webinar. He’ll take a look at what’s known, what is still uncertain and what may change in 2015 regarding the Food Safety Modernization Act. Mr. Kline will cover the timeline for compliance, compliance considerations for various size farms, as well as considerations for “mixed facilities,” such as those who handle other farm’s produce, including CSAs. Finally, he’ll explain integration with existing programs, such as Good Agricultural Practices (GAP).

Producers are invited to join this webinar on Monday, March 9, from 11:00 AM to 12:30 PM to learn more about the Food Safety Modernization Act. This webinar is free to participate. Click here to register to attend.

—Farm Credit East

For more articles on food safety, click here.

One month from today!

CONGRESS REVIEWS SNAP

The House Agriculture Committee this week began a full-scale review of SNAP.  Committee Chairperson Michael Conaway hinted that he thinks changes may be needed.  He began the hearing by stating, "SNAP has grown from a relatively small pilot program to the second largest federal welfare program, quadrupling in spending since 2001…. The program itself has largely not changed in the last 30 years, despite significant changes in the nation's economy and the socioeconomic makeup of the American population. While the economy has changed and other welfare programs have adjusted to meet changing needs, it does not appear that SNAP has.”

In response, Robert Greenstein, president of the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities said that SNAP has played the central role in eliminating severe hunger and malnutrition in this country. He pointed out that SNAP’s benefits are relatively modest, averaging about $1.40 per person per meal. Benefits are also highly targeted by need.  92% of SNAP benefits go to households with monthly incomes below the poverty line, 57% to families below half the poverty line. And, while SNAP participation and costs have grown in recent years most analysts have found the biggest reason by far is the economy followed by an increase in the share of eligible families — especially low-income working families — who participate. In 2002, only 43% of eligible low-income working families participated.  In 2012, 72% did.

Source: Center for Budget and Policy Priorities, 2/25/15, SNAP Review

TED event on food next week

On Saturday, March 7, 2015, the 5th annual TEDxManhattan, “Changing the Way We Eat” will take place in New York City. TEDxManhattan aims to raise awareness and educate others about problems with our food system. 

The goal is not only to educate ourselves but also to educate others. We truly believe that knowledge is power! This year’s event boasts a diverse array of speakers who are working to help shape the sustainable food movement, including:

• Joel Berg, NYC Coalition Against Hunger
• Dr. Robert Graham, Lenox Hill Hospital
• Henry Hargreaves, photographer
• Kendra Kimbirauskas, Socially Responsible Agricultural Project/Goat Mountain Pastured Meats
• Nikiko Masumoto, Masumoto Family Farm
• Michele Merkel, Food & Water Watch
• Danny Meyer, Union Square Hospitality Group
• Danielle Nierenberg, Food Tank
• Ali Partovi, Silicon Valley Investor
• Stefanie Sacks, “Stirring the Pot”
• Anim Steel, Real Food Challenge
• Marcel Van Ooyen, GrowNYC
• Ietef “DJ Cavem” Vita, International recording artist

We will be webcasting this year’s conference live from New York City (approximately 10:30 AM - 6 PM EST) to provide access to viewers across our globe. We are encouraging individuals, groups, and organizations to host viewing parties of the event in their local community to initiate a conversation about the problems in our local, regional and national food system.

TEDxManhattan viewing parties must be free of charge to an audience of up to 100 people, show the webcast free of any advertising or promotion for sponsors, and follow TED’s guidelines regarding commercial and non-commercial venues. Though the conference is best viewed in its entirety, viewing parties in different time zones and hosts facing other scheduling issues may show just one or two sessions and still register as an official viewing party for TEDxManhattan. Visit our website to find out more about putting on a TEDxManhattan viewing party.

If you're interested in hosting a viewing party, please fill out the registration form so we can get you all the materials you need and connect you with others on our map who are hosting parties and working to change the food system!

Sign up for a CSA share this weekend!

February 28 is the most common day to sign up for a CSA share - have you signed up yet?

Find a list of St. Lawrence County farmers here.

Not familiar with CSA, which stands for Community Supported Agriculture?  CSA has become an important model to support local agriculture since it was introduced to the United States in the 1980s and since grown to over 6,000 farms across the country. To join a CSA, members buy a share of the harvest in the Winter and Spring and then get a box of local produce each week throughout the growing season.

Read an article  about CSA's in The Journal.

Funding for school gardens

Thinking about starting a school garden for next year?

Have a look at PLT’s GreenWorks! Guidebook which offers practical ideas and pointers for getting a GreenWorks! project off and running. You can also, check out PLT’s Branch newsletter for some examples of past PLT GreenWorks! projects and teacher tips, and our news releases that announce some of the grants awarded over the past several years.

Share our GreenWorks! grants promotional flyer with your colleagues and friends!

Questions?  Check out the Frequently Asked Questions

Opinion piece on SNAP

President Obama must show resolve in defending the SNAP Program, currently “under siege” despite the fact that more than 46.5 million Americans receive benefits, a number that has not changed much since 2013’s record participation numbers, writes Mark Bittman in this op-ed. Although the economy has been recovering, the corporate elite have become richer while income for most Americans stagnated or declined. “While raising the minimum wage and addressing income inequality are huge issues, protecting existing programs for the less well-off is the most important battle right now,” notes Bittman.

Let’s Address the State of Food – The New York Times, January 19, 2015