Few legislative texts are as essential as the Farm Bill. Reshaped every five years, this piece of legislation plays a major role in defining the American food system. It frames the priorities of the US agricultural policy (say, increase commodity crops for exports and biofuels). Historically, it has also provided the biggest source of funding for food, nutrition and conservation programs. So when the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition & Forestry issued its draft of the new farm bill, last week, a lot of people got upset: the budget for the aforementioned programs gets the axe, while subsidies benefitting plush corporate farms are maintained under a new name. Meanwhile, organic agriculture in general, and small producers of health-promoting foods like fruits and vegetables in particular, are set to receive no more than the usual crumbs.
Read Grist’s article, and click on its links, to get a good picture of the situation.
Earth Day is a great opportunity to remember and reflect, if only for a moment, on the symbiotic relationship between our planet and its inhabitants. Now, what if we could be present to it every day, and taste daily the scrumptious richness it gives our lives?
