by Leslie G. Woods
... Indeed, the meta-narrative around our nation’s food and farm
policy has changed completely in one Farm Bill cycle. Last time, in the debate around the 2007 Farm
Bill, the PC(USA) joined with ecumenical partners to call for an end to
trade-distorting subsidies and for investments in nutrition and
conservation. Today, in the 2012 Farm
Bill debate (2012 because the current Farm Bill actually expired in 2012), we
are still advocating for just food systems and investments in food aid,
conservation, and rural development, but it is in the context of a Senate that
voted to cut Food Stamps by $4 billion and House of Representatives that has
introduced a bill to cut $40 billion from the same program. What happened? Read More
by Christine Meléndez Ashley
When one hears about the farm bill, images of idyllic farm
land, tractors, red barns, and silos likely come to mind. In reality, the
policy embodied in the farm bill reaches far beyond the farm. This vital piece
of legislation affects our entire food system, from what is grown in fields to
whether or not families are able to put food on the table. Just as apt a title
for the bill would be the “anti-hunger bill”… Read More
