Protect America's Farmers
- Full Farm CSA
- 1 day ago
- 2 min read
Note: We are sharing this petition aimed at encouraging the US Department of Agriculture to work on improving the economic situation of America's small and mid-sized farms. Please consider signing. Also, this inspiring article by one of the organizers of the petition, Charles Eisenstein, uses Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath to remind us that the situation we now face started back in the 1930s. It has continued ever since. He thinks we have an opportunity to make a difference today.
Below is quoted from the petition on Change.org:
Sign this urgent petition to demand that the USDA deliver healthy food for our families and schools, and stand with the farmers who make it possible.
America’s farmers are facing a dire economic crisis that threatens the future of our food supply, the health of our children, and our national security. Major cuts to key farm programs at the USDA have left farmers who grow healthy local food without the markets or support they need.
Since 2017, the U.S. has lost over 162,220 farms, an average of 63 family farms a day, due to monopoly consolidation and soaring input costs. With a looming farm and debt crisis, these numbers are expected to skyrocket as the USDA is now prioritizing a future bailout plan for only the largest commodity farmers. Small and Mid-sized farmers need your help today!
For the past several decades, monopoly power in the food system has strangled farmer profits, and now tariff turbulence and rising input costs have left many unable to sell their crops, while market prices remain flat. Farmer bankruptcies are soaring as the USDA cuts programs that protect soil, support family farms, and feed our kids.
Industrial agribusiness giants like Bayer, Cargill, Smithfield, and JBS are raking in tens of billions in subsidies each year, while organic and regenerative farms—the ones we need to make America’s children healthier—are being driven out of business. Without funding for soil health, conservation, and local food infrastructure, we cannot rebuild rural economies or improve the health of America’s children.
We call on Secretary Rollins to act NOW:
Restore conservation staff and funding to protect soil and water.
Support organic and regenerative agriculture to reduce the toxic load in children’s food.
Restore the $1 billion cut from local food infrastructure programs that children and families rely on for a healthy diet.
Use USDA purchasing power to support healthy food and independent, sustainable farmers.
Support healthy school meals by investing in real kitchens and staff training so that children are not dependent on ultra-processed foods.
Reform checkoff programs so funds don’t flow to Big Ag lobbyists.
Ensure relief programs support farmers growing healthy food—not just commodity producers and chemical input suppliers.
These are not partisan issues—they’re common sense, pro-family, pro-farmer, pro-healthy food values that unite Americans across the spectrum.
In partnership with Farm Action and Moms Across America.
