Advertise on podcast: The Farm Report

Access to land is the number one challenge facing the next generation of farmers in the US. Centuries of discrimination and land theft have put this resource out of reach of farmers who are Black, Indigenous, and People of Color. Everyday in the US we lose 2,000 acres of viable farmland to development. With millions of acres on the verge of changing hands, the Farm Bill is our best chance to ensure this land transitions equitably to the next generation of farmers. We’ll dig into the land access challenges farmers face, how the One Million Acres for the Future campaign provides solutions, and the role the next farm bill can play. Visit https://www.youngfarmers.org/land/ to find out more.

Despite an increasing number of farmers growing food in cities urban agriculture wasn’t acknowledged in the farm bill until 2018. Lisa Held, journalist with Civil Eats and former Farm Report host provides the scoop on how the Farm Bill will impact the future of urban ag. Melissa Metrick and Wythe Marschall, co-hosts of HRN’s Fields podcast, give us some perspective on urban land-access challenges and what’s happening on the ground in cities across the country. And, our very own co-host Alita Kelly shares some of the urban agriculture projects she’s been working on in her community.

The nutrition title was first included in the 1973 farm bill. It’s projected to make up 84% of total Farm Bill spending, with most of the funds going to SNAP. That’s because the program helps more than 40 million low-income individuals provide food for their families each month. Some of those people are farmers. In this episode, we talk to Mark Nicholson, Senior Director of Policy at the Fair Food Network to dig into how the farm bill links farms and food access. And we’ll talk to farmers about how they are uniquely positioned to directly provide nutritious food for the families in their communities.

Farmers are now dealing with the impacts of the climate crisis on a daily basis. Experts predict weather events including droughts and flooding will only get worse. Young and beginning farmers, especially BIPOC farmers, are feeling those impacts the most. Are there opportunities to advance water and climate action and justice through the 2024 Farm Bill? We interview Abi Fain, Chief Legal and Policy Officer at the Intertribal Ag Council. And we’ll talk to young farmers building solutions to address water access and climate issues.

Why should our next generation of farmers – and just about everyone who eats – care about the farm bill? Celize Christy, an Organizer at HEAL Food Alliance explains the basic details on what’s in the legislation, how it gets written, and how it impacts you. Then, Young Farmers’ Policy Campaigns Co-Director Vanessa Garcia Polanco lays out the path forward in terms of the most important issues this time around. And we talk to farmers KD Randall and Matt Hollenbeck about what they need from their policymakers in D.C. The Farm Report is hosted by Leigh Ollman and Alita Kelly, produced by Leigh Ollman, Evan Flom and H Conley, and edited by Hannah Beal and H Conley. Audio engineering is by Armen Spendjian and H Conley. Music is by Breakmaster Cylinder and Jangwa Learn more about the National Young Farmers Coalition here and consider becoming a member. Click here to take action on the farm bill and other important policy issues.

Join us for a special series of The Farm Report in collaboration with The National Young Farmers Coalition that's all about The Farm Bill. Tune in to hear from farmers, policymakers, organizers, and food advocates about all the ways the farm bill directly impacts our lives - whether we realize it or not. We’ll break down farm policy and talk to young farmers about what hangs in the balance for them as another Farm Bill gets made. Join our coalition to shift power and change policy for the next generation of growers and land stewards. The future of good food depends on it.

Humans have used fermentation to preserve crops and add flavor and health benefits to their diets for thousands of years. Since 2015, Sarah Conezio and Isaiah Billington have been putting their own stamp on that age-old tradition with Keepwell Vinegar. Together, they partner directly with small, organic farms to turn apples, ginger, and persimmons into specialty vinegars, farro into miso, and soybeans into soy sauce, bottling the Mid-Atlantic’s seasonal bounty. Home cooks and the best chefs in Baltimore, Washington DC, and Philadelphia—and increasingly far beyond—now use their products. In this episode, host Lisa Held talks to the Keepwell founders about making vinegar, working with farmers, and why they do what they do.

Whether they’ve grazed on grass their entire lives, been raised in an organic system, or lived on a conventional dairy farm, the vast majority of dairy cows get sold into the commodity beef system when they’re retired and get integrated into the same cheap meat supply. With Butter Meat Co, Jill Gould is betting on a different model. By selling retired organic dairy cows directly in her local community in Western New York and online, she’s working to get struggling organic dairies higher prices for their animals while getting more flavorful and environmentally friendly beef to consumers. In this episode, host Lisa Held talks to Gould about eating beef from dairy cows, the economic proposition for farmers, and what the model might mean for the planet.

America’s farmers are aging rapidly, and those looking to sell their land are finding no shortage of buyers. Billionaires, global corporations, investment firms, and developers are all buying up farmland for profit at a quick clip, driving up prices and making it nearly impossible for young and beginning farmers without accumulated wealth to afford their own acreage to plant and harvest. “Farmers Need Equitable Access to Land Now” is the message behind the National Young Farmers Coalition’s One Million Acres for the Future Campaign. In this episode, NYFC Land Campaign Director Holly Rippon-Butler talks to host Lisa Held about the factors driving land access challenges, historic and ongoing injustices that make accessing land even more difficult for BIPOC farmers, and the long-term policy solutions NYFC is pushing for.

Adrien de Botin and his wife Carolina Prioglio are the husband-and-wife founders of Maison/Made, and to make the certified biodynamic skin-care products that they sell, they grow their own medicinal herbs on a family farm in Burgundy and have built a network of small farm suppliers around the world. In this episode, host Lisa Held talks to de Botin about the couple’s efforts—from the specifics of biodynamic practices and why they matter, to how biodynamic farming, a system focused on minimizing inputs, building healthy soil, and working with local ecology, compares to systems like organic or regenerative agriculture.

Over the past decade, hummus has exploded in popularity in the U.S, but compared to the many brands that now line shelves at every supermarket, Little Sesame is doing things differently. The Washington D.C. fast casual restaurant, which now also sells its hummus at Whole Foods and other stores in the region, gets all of its chickpeas from a single Montana farmer who is pushing the envelope on climate-friendly farming with his organic, regenerative practices. In this episode, host Lisa Held talks to Nick Wiseman, co-founder of Little Sesame, and Casey Bailey, regenerative farmer, about their unique partnership, how chickpeas are grown, why they’re a particularly beneficial crop in terms of climate impact, and more.

While USDA-certified organic food still accounts for a small fraction of total U.S. food sales, it’s now big business. In 2020, data from the Organic Trade Association showed sales of organic food rose at a record rate to a new high of $56.4 billion, and as the industry has become more lucrative, fraud and cheating have increased. The Cornucopia Institute is a non-profit watchdog organization that has been working to hold companies and the USDA accountable to organic’s original ideals around soil health, animal welfare, and more. In this episode, host Lisa Held speaks with executive director Melody Morrell about the organization’s organic scorecards, a new Living Soil campaign, and what’s happening at the USDA right now to close loopholes and strengthen the standards. Correction: In this episode, Melody Morrell's statement that 25 operations produce 75% of the organic milk in the country is false. The correct statistic is: 22 operations produce 25% of the organic milk in the country.