Young Farmers Podcast

Join us for a special series of The Farm Report in collaboration with Heritage Radio Network 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.

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This is the third episode of our 2023 Farm Bill series, digging into the farm policy that will affect the next generation of farmers and ranchers.

We’ve been asking how 1,000 pages of federal policy can provide tangible benefits and support to beginning and BIPOC farmers, our communities, and the environment. And in this episode, we're joined by Mario Holguin and Julieta Saucedo of La Semilla Food Center, and Ana Moran, Water Organizer at the National Young Farmers Coalition.

La Semilla Food Center, based in Anthony, New Mexico, has a mission “to foster a healthy, self-reliant, fair, and sustainable food system in the Paso del Norte region of southern New Mexico and El Paso, TX.” They do this work through a number of programs that Mario and Julieta discuss with Ana, including their Community Farm, farmer fellowships, policy and community development, and storytelling efforts.

Throughout their conversation Ana, Julieta, and Mario explore some of the ways that the 2023 Farm Bill can directly address the climate crisis, and what building climate resilience looks like across the Southwest. We know young farmers across the country are motivated by conservation and social justice. In our 2022 national survey 97% or respondents said their farm or ranch was using sustainable practices, and 86% identified their practices as being regenerative.

We end our episode today with a brief chat between Erin Foster-West, Policy Coordination and Management Director with the Coalition, and myself. Erin shares some exciting new bills recently introduced in Congress that would help small farms secure more accessible funding for conservation efforts and also support community support systems through farmer-to-farmer education opportunities.

This is the second episode of a six-part series focused on the one thing everyone in our network – from farmers to policymakers, organizers to corporate partners – is laser-focused on right now: the 2023 Farm Bill.

In this episode, we're joined by Dãnia Davy, Director of Land Retention and Advocacy for the Federation of Southern Cooperatives, and Alita Kelly, Land Organizing Director at the National Young Farmers Coalition. Throughout our conversation we’ll explore some of the ways that the 2023 Farm Bill can directly address the land access crisis happening right now in the US.

We end our episode with Holly Rippon-Butler, Young Farmers Land Policy Director. Holly tells us why each and every one of us should be a land advocate, how young farmers are building powerful solutions to the land access crisis across the country, and a bit about what's next for our land policy priorities in the 2023 Farm Bill.

This is the first episode of a new six-part series focused on the one thing everyone in our network – from farmers to policymakers, organizers to corporate partners – seems to be laser focused on right now: the 2023 Farm Bill.

We're joined by Billy Hackett, Policy Specialist for the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC), for a high-level overview of the farm bill. We know... 1,000 pages of federal policy, how exciting, right?! But we’re here to convince you that this bill is the most important piece of legislation shaping the future of food in this country, and that it affects all of us.

The farm bill influences what you eat every day, who grows your food and how they grow it, what food you can afford to buy, and even what you put in your gas tank. And we want you to know that you can help us make sure that this bill supports all of us–our families, our communities, and the next generation of farmers and ranchers.

Access to affordable, quality farmland is the top challenge young farmers face, particularly BIPOC farmers, who today make up only 2% of farmland owners. Young Farmer's Land Campaign Director Holly Rippon-Butler talks with New York Times reporter Elizabeth Dunn about her recent article, “How ‘Fairy Tale’ Farms Are Ruining Hudson Valley Agriculture,” about the land access crisis and how the National Young Farmers Coalition is working to transition one million acres of farmland to the next generation of farmers.

In this episode of the Organizing Podcast Series we hear an interview with language justice advocates, Millo and Bruje of Cooperativa Brújulas, about expanding our perspectives and diving in to global solidarity in our work. We also hear from Co-Executive Director of Young Farmers, Martin Lemos, and California Director, Eli Tizcareño about each of their work. This episode is primarily in Spanish, with an additional contribution in English from U.S. Representative Kim Schrier of WA-08.

Today we're coming to you with a special episode from our Hoosier Young Farmers Chapter. The Hoosier chapter just released their own podcast series which shares the voices of farmers from across the state, farmers you might not think of when you picture the farmers of Indiana. This episode features stories about the challenge of acquiring affordable, quality land for farming, and some of the creative ways these farmers have managed to get on the land. You can listen to the rest of the Hoosier Young Farmer Podcast at hoosieryfc.org/stories.

Marla Larrave, Political Education Director at HEAL Food Alliance, joins us to talk about HEAL’s School of Political Leadership (SoPL) and how to turn your big dreams into tangible plans for actionable change. Then we hear from Congressional guests Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (ME-01) and Congressman Jeff Fortenberry (NE-01). Our episode closes with a conversation between Young Farmers Grassroots Manager Faith Shaeffer and Land Campaign Director Holly Rippon-Butler about how the Coalition’s Land Campaign is built around the stories of young farmers across the country and how your voices can continue to influence the policies we advocate for on the Hill.

Edited by Hannah Beal.

Barbara James Norman, a blueberry farmer and lifelong advocate for Midwestern farmers of color, talks with Young Farmers Grassroots Manager Faith Shaeffer about her decades of organizing her community in Covert, Michigan and the greater Midwest. Barbara discusses her work fighting for access to USDA programs for farmers of color and facilitating intergenerational community building, using her own farm as a hub for building connections between farmers and the resources available to them. She tells the story of how she went from being physically locked out of access to USDA offices near her, to serving on some of the highest leadership positions for farmers at the Agency.

We also hear from Senator Tina Smith of Michigan and Congressman Antonio Delgado (NY-19) about how Young Farmers influence their work in Congress. We close this episode with a conversation between Young Farmers Co-Executive Director Sophie Ackoff and Federal Policy Director Vanessa Garcia Polanco about how hearing your stories led to a huge win in COVID relief bills for young farmers and farmers of color.

Edited by Hannah Beal.

Gerardo Reyes Chávez from the Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW), and Tiffany Goetzinger from the Fair Food Program join us to talk about their three decade campaign fighting for worker protections for farm workers on tomato farms in Florida and how they brought some of the nation’s largest food companies to heel on sourcing only from farms with more ethical labor protections for their workers. Tiffany and Gerardo share how the CIW built accountability mechanisms into the design of their campaign and how they’ve centered the voices of the farm workers on the frontlines in their organizing for three decades.

We also hear from Wisconsin Senator Tammy Baldwin about how your voices make a difference in her work in D.C. The episode closes with a conversation between David Howard, State Policy Campaigns Director at Young Farmers, and our Pennsylvania Manager Karen Gardner about the power of lobby days.

Edited by Hannah Beal.