Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program
USDA Listening Session - Oct. 27 2008, Washington, D.C.
Comments delivered by Zach Baker, OFRF Policy Associate

Good afternoon. Thank you for the opportunity to provide testimony at this session…My name is Zach Baker and I work with the Organic Farming Research Foundation, an organization that has been at the forefront of ensuring farmers have the knowledge they need to successfully farm using organic methods. 

Organic farming, which relies on the complex interaction of ecological processes instead of the use of synthetic pesticides and other unsustainable practices, is particularly management intensive, demanding a great deal of knowledge and skill from the farmer or rancher.  Yet, when implemented and managed correctly, organic systems can provide multiple benefits for the environment, human health, and rural communities.  Protecting water quality, mitigating and adapting to climate change, improving the health of the soil, enhancing biodiversity, supporting pollinator health, decreasing human and wildlife exposure to harmful pesticides, and providing a way for farmers to make a living - these are the benefits that have motivated more than 10,000 farmers in the US to produce organically, and that have captured the attention of a new generation of farmers. 
 
California FarmLink, recognized as a leading organization in cultivating a new generation of farmers and ranchers, has reported that 80% of the beginning farmers and ranchers that come to them for services are committed to organic or sustainable agriculture.  Whether it is the desire to use farming practices they were brought up with in other countries where inputs necessary for conventional production were not available, or farm workers looking to start their own farm without using damaging synthetic pesticides that may have caused themselves, their friends, or loved ones harm, or veterans looking to farm as another service to their country, or those who hold the belief that their role as stewards of the land should be to leave the land as well off, if not in a better condition then they found it, beginning farmers and ranchers are looking to organic farming as the answer. 

At the same time, consumers, motivated by many of the same health and environmental concerns of beginning farmers and ranchers have been consistently voting with their dollars for organic agriculture.  Sales of organic products have been growing at 20% a year for more than a decade.  The organic share of the domestic food retail market is currently approaching 4% and is expected to grow to 10% by the next Farm Bill.  Yet despite this huge market opportunity, a gap in education and information about organic farming systems, especially for beginning organic farmers, has caused farmers not to be able to take advantage of this opportunity.  The BFRDP can help bridge this gap.

Congress, recognizing the market opportunity organic agriculture represents for farmers and ranchers and the public benefits of organic agriculture, included a number of programs to support organic farmers and those looking to transition to organic agriculture in the 2008 Farm Bill.  The Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program is, and must be a part of this effort to reinvent US agriculture by encouraging and creating a new generation of organic farmers. 

The Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program must fund projects that support beginning farmers and ranchers producing organically.  Priority should be given to those projects that include mentoring and farmer to farmer education.  Organic farmers who have built their knowledge of organic systems with limited help from federal support compared to their conventional counterparts, are a wealth of knowledge and experience for those farmers just starting out. 

A number of other grant purposes in the legislative language are particularly important for organic.

Certified organic land is a prized commodity– it takes 3 years for land to become certified organic – ensuring that organic land does not lose its status when farmers retire is key to keeping organic land in production and for BFRs looking to farm organically, not having to go through 3 years of what can be a very challenging transition period.  As a result, projects (c) assisting beginning farmers or ranchers in acquiring land from retiring farmers and ranchers and (D) innovative farm and ranch transfer strategies that support the transfer of organic land are critical.

Other grant purposes such as whole farm planning, risk management education that also takes into account alternative strategies used by organic farmers such as community supported agriculture schemes, conservation assistance to enhance the environmental benefits of organic systems, and diversification and marketing strategies are all critically important for the success of organic farmers.

In guidance around making grants, the organic farming research foundation supports the statement in the legislative language that the Secretary shall give priority to partnerships and collaborations that are led by or include non-governmental and community-based organizations with expertise in new agricultural producer trainings and outreach.  In the absence of in depth USDA expertise on organic agriculture, organic farmers and ranchers have relied on non-governmental organizations and community based organizations to get the knowledge and technical assistance they need to successfully farm organically.  Many of these organizations also have the site-specific knowledge necessary for implementing successful organic systems in the diverse geographic areas of the country.  Projects funded through the BFRDP program should build upon the existing wisdom and programs of these organizations. 

In summary, organic agriculture represents an exciting and beneficial opportunity for beginning farmers and ranchers and the Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program should support and encourage the entry of a new generation of farmers and ranchers into organic production.  Ensuring that a person on the grant review panel includes a person with expertise in organic agriculture will assist CSREES in identifying the most worthy organic-related proposals.  As USDA undertakes new efforts to support organic agriculture agency-wide, the Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development will be an integral part of this work augmenting and enhancing it.  The payoff for getting a new generation of farmers and ranchers into organic farming will be seen in a healthy environment, healthy children, and productive soils for future generations to come.  I, and the Organic Farming Research Foundation, look forward to that future.