By Roger Johnson, president, National Farmers Union NFU ‘s strength, as a federation of member states, relies largely on the activism, energy and commitment of its members, who are engaged in all aspects of policy making. Three Farmers Union states are observing their 100th year anniversary in 2015, and should all be commended for a … Read More
Blog
Growing Up in Farmers Union
By Rochelle Bitz, education intern, National Farmers Union To say that the National Farmers Union education program played a part in my “growing up,” is an understatement. The education program was a good chunk of my time spent on learning way more than I ever could have in a classroom. I started attending Farmers Union … Read More
America’s Farm Organizations Must Step Forward to Meet Demographic Challenges
By Roger Johnson, president, National Farmers Union Oftentimes, it’s not until life presents us with new obstacles that we reassess the situation, discover untapped resources, unused talent or new approaches that could be harnessed to meet the challenge. The lack of abundant rainfall for farming certain crops, for example, has led to the development of … Read More
The RFS Helped Light South Dakota’s Economy on Fire
By Doug Sombke, president, South Dakota Farmers Union For most of my life, making a living as a farmer meant trying to make ends meet knowing that commodity prices were almost always going to be relatively flat, while production costs rose yearly. The price of a bushel of corn was stuck in the $2.00 range … Read More
RFS: A Shot in the Arm to Rural America
By Jim Benham, president, Indiana Farmers Union It seems Indiana’s farmers are facing too much rain, or drought; or it’s too hot too early, or too cold to soon, or there’s the late spring freeze or the early fall freeze. It’s either feast or famine in farming, and we’ve developed tools and techniques for coping … Read More
Conservation Reserve Program Sign-Up
By Daniela Silva, government relations intern, National Farmers Union Last week, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) will be accepting new applications starting December 1, 2015, through February 26, 2016, to participate in the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP). Secretary Vilsack is specifically targeting the “800,000 additional acres of highly … Read More
NFU Urges EPA to Adhere to RFS Volume Targets Set Forth by Congress; Says Congress Should Resist Revisiting Popular Law
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE June 1, 2015 Contact: Andrew Jerome, 202-314-3106 ajerome@nfudc.org WASHINGTON (June 1, 2015) – National Farmers Union (NFU) President Roger Johnson today urged the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to adhere to Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) volume targets as set forth in federal law and asked Congress to resist changing the popular fuel … Read More
Congress Must Allow the RFS to Keep Rural America Blooming
By Roger Johnson, president, National Farmers Union Before the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) was enacted in 2008, commodity prices had been flat for decades, investment in rural America was negligible and the prospect of prosperity for many family farmers seemed like a dream that had been lost. The passage of the RFS was like a … Read More
Congress Needs to Leave COOL Alone
By Darin Von Ruden, president, Wisconsin Farmers Union Nobody seemed to care where their pet treats came from until dogs started dropping dead from eating tainted treats, mostly from China. Since 2007, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has received more than 5,800 complaints from consumers about their pets getting sick and, sadly, over 1,000 … Read More
NFU Applauds Swift Senate Action on Grain Standards Reauthorization Act
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (May 21, 2015) Contact: Andrew Jerome, 202-314-3106 ajerome@nfudc.org WASHINGTON (May 21, 2015) – National Farmers Union (NFU) President Roger Johnson today applauded the Senate Agriculture Committee leadership for its work on the swift reauthorization of the U.S. Grain Standards Act (USGSA). “On behalf of National Farmers Union’s 200,000 members, I applaud your work … Read More