Too early to think about 2012? Not really--Farm Bill discussion happening now.

Prior to 2008 our agricultural policies and practices were already recognized as problematic and in need of change. Farm Bill 2008 presented an opportunity of fix some things but resulted in more of the same. It turned out to be good for agribusiness and processed food, but came up seriously short for small farmers, communities, and real food. The next Farm Bill comes up for vote in 2012 so the House Committee on Agriculture is soliciting feedback and collecting information right now. Go to Slow Food USA for a bit of information and submit your comments to the HCA, if you choose.

The Food Bill is complicated and impacts our lives in ways I had never imagined. It sounds so pastoral and innocuous, but it is actually industrial and has had far reaching effects on everything from school lunch to the environment to African farmers. Author Daniel Imhoff demystifies it nicely in Food Fight: The Citizen's Guide to a Food and Farm Bill. If you want to read it for free ('cause you already paid for it with your taxes) a copy is available at the library. Take an insider tip and search the catalog by author to get around the faulty catalog record.

Here's what I submitted.  I put it together in about 5 minutes so it's brief, but cut and paste all you want.

Farm Bill 2012 should reduce, or better yet, eliminate subsidies to farm owners with incomes of more than 1 million per year.

The bill should encourage heath regulations that recognize the difference between small farmers and industrial agriculture, and then craft and enforce laws that make sense for two very different business models with very different priorities.  Small farmers need laws that allow them to grow healthy, real food while making a living wage.  Citizens need laws that make industrial agriculture responsible for the effects of their product, in an arena where profit is the driving motivator.

Farmers who receive subsidies for commodity crops should be allowed to grow organic specialty crops on their property without losing the commodity subsidy.

Farmers producing on less than 400 acres and planting diverse and multiple crops should receive first priority.
Funding should go first to American farmers who produce for the domestic market.

The Farm Bill should include funding to rebuild the local food processing infrastructure, including a USDA inspector in each state.

The Farm Bill should include funding to help schools and farmers develop programs that bring fresh, locally grown food to school breakfast and lunch programs.

Include provisions for educating children about where food comes from and how it is grown. Hands-on experience would be ideal.

Farm Bill 2012 should include provisions that make it easier for people who want to buy abandoned or existing farm land to get a loan, without encouraging converting open space to farm land.

Develop programs that help local communities expand urban and suburban agricultural programs.