Notable Diaries

- Recent Congressional Hearings
- 2008 By The Numbers
- The 2007 Ag Census
- Cuba Diaries
- Mexico Diaries
- Why I Oppose GMOs
- My Visit to Growing Power
- My Trip to a Hog Confinement
- Why We Grow So Much Corn and Soy
- How the Chicken Gets to Your Plate

Politicians To Know

USDA

Senate

Agriculture
Chair: Blanche Lincoln (D-AR)
- Max Baucus (D-MT)
- Michael Bennet (D-CO)
- Sherrod Brown (D-OH)
- Bob Casey (D-PA)
- Kent Conrad (D-ND)
- Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY)
- Tom Harkin (D-IA)
- Amy Klobuchar (D-MN)
- Pat Leahy (D-VT)
- Ben Nelson (D-NE)
- Debbie Stabenow (D-MI)
- Saxby Chambliss (R-GA)
- Thad Cochran (R-MS)
- John Cornyn (R-TX)
- Chuck Grassley (R-IA)
- Mike Johanns (R-NE)
- Dick Lugar (R-IN)
- Mitch McConnell (R-KY)
- Pat Roberts (R-KS)
- John R. Thune (R-SD)

Appropriations
Chair: Daniel Inouye (D-HI)
Ag Sub-Committee
Chair: Herb Kohl (D-WI)
- Byron Dorgan (D-ND)
- Dick Durbin (D-IL)
- Dianne Feinstein (D-CA)
- Tom Harkin (D-IA)
- Tim Johnson (D-SD)
- Ben Nelson (D-NE)
- Jack Reed (D-RI)
- Robert Bennett (R-UT)
- Christopher Bond (R-MO)
- Sam Brownback (R-KS)
- Thad Cochran (R-MS)
- Mitch McConnell (R-KY)
- Arlen Specter (R-PA)

Health, Education, Labor, & Pensions
- Chris Dodd (D-CT)

Senate Hunger Caucus

House

Agriculture
Chair: B Collin Peterson (D-MN)
V. Chair: B Tim Holden (D-PA)
B Joe Baca (D-CA)
- John Boccieri (D-OH)
B* Leonard Boswell (D-IA)
- Bobby Bright (D-AL)
B* Dennis Cardoza (D-CA)
- Travis Childers (D-MS)
B Jim Costa (D-CA)
- Henry Cuellar (D-TX)
- Kathy Dahlkemper (D-PA)
B Brad Ellsworth (D-IN)
- Debbie Halvorson (D-IL)
B Stephanie Herseth Sandlin (D-SD)
- Steve Kagen (D-WI)
- Larry Kissell (D-NC)
B Frank Kratovil (D-MD)
- Betsy Markey (D-CO)
B Jim Marshall (D-GA)
P Eric Massa (D-NY)
B Mike McIntyre (D-NC)
- Walt Minnick (D-ID)
B Earl Pomeroy (D-ND)
- Mark Schauer (D-MI)
- Kurt Schrader (D-OR)
B David Scott (D-GA)
B Zachary Space (D-OH)
- Timothy Walz (D-MN)
- Frank Lucas (R-OK)
- Bill Cassidy (R-LA)
- K. Michael Conaway (R-TX)
- Jeff Fortenberry (R-NE)
- Virginia Foxx (R-NC)
- Bob Goodlatte (R-VA)
- Sam Graves (R-MO)
- Timothy Johnson (R-IL)
- Steve King (R-IA)
- Robert Latta (R-OH)
- Blaine Luetkemeyer (R-MO)
- Cynthia Lummis (R-WY)
- Jerry Moran (R-KS)
- Randy Neugebauer (R-TX)
- Phil Roe (R-TN)
- Mike Rogers (R-AL)
- Jean Schmidt (R-OH)
- Adrian Smith (R-NE)
- Glenn Thompson (R-PA)
*=House Organic Caucus member
B=Blue Dog Democrat

Appropriations
Chair: Dave Obey (D-WI)
Ag Sub-Committee
Chair: P Rosa DeLauro (D-CT)
- Sanford Bishop (D-GA)
* Allen Boyd (D-FL)
- Lincoln Davis (D-TN)
*P Sam Farr (D-CA)
*P Maurice D. Hinchey (D-NY)
P Jesse L. Jackson, Jr. (D-IL)
P Marcy Kaptur (D-OH)
- Jack Kingston (R-GA)
- Rodney Alexander (R-LA)
- Jo Ann Emerson (R-MO)
* Tom Latham (R-IA)
*=House Organic Caucus member

P=Congressional Progressive Caucus

Education and Labor
P Chair: George Miller (D-CA)
- Jason Altmire (D-PA)
- Robert Andrews (D-NJ)
- Timothy Bishop (D-NY)
P Yvette Clarke (D-NY)
- Joe Courtney (D-CT)
- Susan Davis (D-CA)
P Marcia Fudge (D-OH)
P Raul Grijalva (D-AZ)
P Phil Hare (D-IL)
- Ruben Hinojosa (D-TX)
P Mazie Hirono (D-HI)
- Rush Holt (D-NJ)
- Dale Kildee (D-MI)
P Dennis Kucinich (D-OH)
P Dave Loebsack (D-IA)
- Carolyn McCarthy (D-NY)
P Donald Payne (D-NJ)
- Jared Polis (D-CO)
- Robert Scott (D-VA)
- Joe Sestak (D-PA)
- Carol Shea-Porter (D-NH)
P John Tierney (D-MA)
- Dina Titus (D-NV)
- Paul Tonko (D-NY)
P Lynn Woolsey (D-CA)
- David Wu (D-OR)
- Buck McKeon (R-CA)
- Judy Biggert (R-IL)
- Rob Bishop (R-UT)
- Bill Cassidy (R-LA)
- Michael Castle (R-DE)
- Vernon Ehlers (R-MI)
- Luis F Fortuno (R-PR)
- Brett Guthrie (R-KY)
- Peter Hoekstra (R-MI)
- Duncan D. Hunter (R-CA)
- John Kline (R-MN)
- Kenny Marchant (R-TX)
- Tom McClintock (R-CA)
- Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA)
- Thomas Petri (R-WI)
- Phil Roe (R-TN)
- Todd Russell Platts (R-PA)
- Tom Price (R-GA)
- Mark Souder (R-IN)
- GT Thompson (R-PA)
- Joe Wilson (R-SC)
P=Congressional Progressive Caucus

House Organic Caucus
Congressional Progressive Caucus

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Washington Post

Milk Money

by: Jill Richardson

Mon Oct 19, 2009 at 11:06:20 AM PDT

Congrats to Kathy Ozer of the National Family Farm Coalition for getting a Letter to the Editor printed in the Washington Post. She wrote in about a recent WaPo article that spoke about the $350 million in government aid going to dairy farmers without fairly portraying the crisis dairy farmers are going through these days. The real beneficiaries of the government money, says Ozer, are companies like Kraft and Dean Foods. I agree. If things were fair, dairy processors would have to pay a price reflecting the cost of production for the milk they purchase, and they would not be able to undercut American dairy farmers by importing cheap, low quality milk protein concentrate (MPC). Here's the letter:

Support that dairy farmers deserve
The Oct. 9 editorial "Got Money?," denouncing $350 million in emergency funding for dairy farmers, accused those farmers -- suffering through their worst crisis since the Great Depression -- of milking taxpayers and consumers. Nowhere did it mention the real beneficiaries of the millions that we are spending to sustain the livelihoods of America's remaining 59,000 dairy farmers: corporate agribusinesses.
While farmers are receiving 1970 prices for their milk (not adjusted for inflation), Dean Foods, the largest fluid milk processor, and Kraft Foods have recorded gigantic profit increases. Because dairy processors refuse to pay farmers a fair price for their milk, taxpayers are now subsidizing their profits. Consumers should target their outrage at these entities, not dairy farmers, who have no control over the price they receive or the prices at the grocery store.
We have lost more than 80 percent of our dairy farmers since 1981, when President Ronald Reagan decided to deregulate the price of milk. For anyone who wants access to local fresh milk and fears becoming reliant on imports of powdered milk, supporting our remaining dairy farmers is vital.
Katherine Ozer, Washington
Executive Director
National Family Farm Coalition

Discuss :: (1 Comments)

Is the Organic Label Worth the Paper It's Printed On?

by: Jill Richardson

Wed Jul 22, 2009 at 21:35:49 PM PDT

I've semi-neglected talking about a major Washington Post piece questioning the purity of organics from earlier this month. There's been quite a bit of conversation about this, following its publication. Sam Fromartz, author of Organic, Inc., gave his reaction to the WaPo piece on his blog, Chews Wise.

There's More... :: (5 Comments, 623 words in story)

Unraveling Organic

by: Sophy

Wed Jul 08, 2009 at 14:04:13 PM PDT

The organic food that you're buying may not be 100% organic and therefore discredits the integrity of the organic certification. That is the basic gist of The Washington Post's much deliberated article, "Purity of Federal 'Organic' Label is Questioned", published July 3rd. It is a well-known fact that the organic certification is not perfect nor is it the end-all, be-all solution to our broken food system. In truth, I am quite tired of hearing people use "organic" as the sole qualifier to their healthy, "sustainable" diet. A Cheeto is a Cheeto, is a Cheeto by any other name, even "organic", and the company that produces it may not be sustainable in the least.

Multinational corporations have been gobbling up organic companies since they figured out they could make a buck or two off the $23 billion-a-year business. When you buy Horizon Milk, you're supporting dairy giant and factory farmers extraordinaire, Dean Foods. Boca Burgers are owned by Kraft, Odwalla is owned by Coca-Cola, Stonyfield by Danone. (For some great charts on organic food, click here.) For those who care simply about eating healthier, perhaps it doesn't really matter who owns the brand. For others who care about where their dollars are going, buying conventional organic is just buying into the same old corporate machine.

Granted, there are a good number of successful companies who have managed to remain independent. Organic Valley, Amy's Kitchen and Eden Foods are just a few examples that have managed to stay away from corporate takeover. There are also some serious benefits that come along with organic. Animals are fed vegetarian feed and are not given hormones or antibiotics unless ill. Fruits and vegetables are not treated with pesticides. The organic certification also prohibits genetic modification, sewage sludge and irradiation.

There's More... :: (5 Comments, 493 words in story)