Family Farm Defenders Annual Meeting in Oaxaca, Mexico Jan. 10th-17th, 2008

International Forum: Agrofuels and Food Sovereignty

Foro Internacional: Agrocombustibles y Soberania Alimentaria

Join FFD for a solidarity delegation to Oaxaca, including meetings with local grassroots groups, tours of fair trade coffee co-ops, farmers markets, and ejido communities, as well as forums on such issues as agrofuels, land reform, water, and biodiversity.

Estimated cost is $750, limited scholarships available. For more info on the 2008 FFD annual meeting and solidarity delegation to Oaxaca, click here

Gustavo Esteva, who will be one of many Mexican activists participating in the FFD annual meeting, has provided us with an excellent background document: Oaxaca - The Path of Radical Democracy. You can read his analysis here

Join Family Farm Defenders in Opposing the first phase of NAIS, Premises Registration, in Wisconsin!

The Department of Agriculture Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) recently announced a series of hearings for early Jan. 2008 to receive public comment on their proposal for the next implementation phase of the federal National Animal Identification System (NAIS) in Wisconsin. We strongly encourage folks to participate in these hearings and to spread the word to others who will be affected by this draconian state surveillance program that is unprecedented - at least in U.S. history.

For the official DATCP hearing notice that includes these NAIS provisions,click here

If you can not attend in person, you can also submit written comments to DATCP. Better yet is to contact your elected officials, write a letter to your local paper, call into talk show radio, and otherwise publicly express your opposition to this program. Based upon our experience organizing farmers and their allies, if even one person speaks up there are about a dozen others who feel the same and then find the courage to add their voice, too.

DATCP's Hearing Dates and Locations:

Monday, January 7, 2008 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. Fox Valley Technical College 1825 N. Bluemound Drive, Room A160 Appleton, WI 54912

Tuesday, January 8, 2008 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection 2811 Agriculture Drive, First Floor – Room 106 (Boardroom) Madison, Wisconsin 53718

Thursday January 10, 2008 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. Department of Natural Resources West Central Region Headquarters 1300 W. Clairemont Avenue – Room 158 Eau Claire, WI 54701

As many of you may know, Wisconsin has become a national battleground state on NAIS. DATCP and its partner WLIC (which actually administers the program as a private subcontractor) have received millions in taxpayer funding to bring this program into existence, and now many bureaucratic jobs and corporate contracts depend upon its implementation. When over 10% of WI dairy farmers refused to voluntarily register their premises, the state was unable to make good on their threat to pull milk licenses since the state's economy could not afford to criminalize so many productive farmers overnight.

Nonetheless, DATCP is now denying milk licenses to new dairy farmers, including many Amish who strongly oppose NAIS for religious reasons, even though grass-based Amish dairy operations are one of the fastest growing segments of the entire industry. The proposed rule change would also allow the state to register farmers against their will and without their knowledge.

Worse yet, we know that DATCP/WLIC intend to move towards mandatory RFID chipping, phase two of the federal NAIS program, despite recent scientific studies revealing that RFID chips cause cancer, and thus pose a health threat to both livestock and people. A farmer in MI recently had sheriff deputies under state orders enter his land to place RFID chips in his cattle against his will. And then there is the disturbing story of the Faillace family in VT, documented in the book "Mad Sheep," where a USDA led SWAT team invaded their farm to seize and destroy all of their animals wrongly suspected of harboring some prion type disease.

Family Farm Defenders has been an outspoken critic of NAIS for years now, and recently helped form an organization called Free Wisconsin Pastures with the purpose of filing a lawsuit against DATCP/WLIC if necessary to stop this absurd program from destroying the future of farming in our state.

Of course, we would rather NOT have to take this issue to court, which is why it is so paramount that family farmers and others concerned about the future of agriculture in WI exercise their democratic freedom to express their opinion and let our elected officials and DATCP bureaucrats know that NAIS is not acceptable in any form.

Please pass this information along to others and thank you for your support.

The Threat of Agrofuels –

Industrialized GMO Monocultures Will Only Hurt Farmers, Undermine Food Sovereignty, and Make Global Warming Worse

By: John E. Peck Executive Director, Family Farm Defenders

As concerns about peak oil mount, many people are declaring agrofuels to be the latest panacea for saving civilization from its impending collapse. Propelling this bandwagon is a whole gaggle of venture capitalists, free trade advocates, farm commodity groups, agribusiness giants, biotech outfits, and – yes – the oil giants and car makers. As detailed in the July 2007 issue of Seedling (available online at www.grain.org), many of the biggest agrofuel boosters are familiar opponents to those now struggling for global justice, food sovereignty, and land reform. read more

Family Farm Defenders' Popular Holiday Gift Boxes Are Back For 2007!

Tis the season to spread the good cheer about fair trade and local food! Once again, FFD is proud to offer a delicious array of items that not only taste great but help support family farmers in the U.S. and around the world. Whether it is our signature fair trade cheeses, bison cranberry sausage, and native wild rice from the Midwest or fair trade chocolate, coffee, and olive oil from further away, there is something for everyone in our gift boxes.

For specific details on our gift box items read more

A convenient holiday gift box order form can be downloaded and printed by clicking here

You can also call and place your order by phone or fax #608-260-0900.

We prefer checks but can process credit cards if you send us the order form with the necessary information and the cardholder's signature.

You are also welcome to create your own holiday giftbox by choosing from among the various items listed under fair trade cheese in our store section on the left sidebar.

For another unique solidarity gift opportunity, why not support the Gardeners of Eden East Timor Seed Project? You can purchase a kit made up of fruit and vegetable seeds, tools, and/or technical training for a community in Timor-Leste in the name of your friend, colleague, loved one or even yourself. Your gift will help empower people in the newest nation on earth in its quest of achieving food sovereignty.

For ordering information visit: http://justcoffee.coop/holidaygiftoption

For more details on the seed project, check out: http://justcoffee.coop/seedprojectphotos

Wisconsin Family Farmers Celebrate Fair Trade Month by Hosting Cocoa Farmers From Ghana!

On Wed. Oct. 11th, 2007 Family Farm Defenders helped welcome two women farmer leaders of Kuapa Kokoo, the largest fair trade cocoa co-op in West Africa with 45,000 members. In the photo to the left John Kiefer shows Cecilia Appianim his dairy farm near Sauk City, while in the photo to the right Cecilia gets to see Cedar Grove Cheese with Camy Matthay and John Peck.

Divine Chocolate USA (http://www.divinechocolateusa.com/) facilitated the Midwest tour of the Ghanaian cocoa farmers, along with our friends at Just Coffee (http://www.justcoffee.coop/), SERRV (http://www.serrv.org/), A Greater Gift (http://www.agreatergift.org/), and the Madison Fair Trade Action Alliance (MadFTAA). You'll find Kuapa Kokoo's fair trade Divine chocolate in our FFD holiday gift boxes, but you can also ask for it at your local store or grocery co-op!

Keep Monsanto Out Of Our Milk

By: Michael Hansen and David Wallinga

Published Monday, September 10, 2007 by The Providence Journal (Providence, RI) http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2007/09/10/3727/

The recent announcement by Kroger stores that it will no longer use the genetically engineered growth hormone rbST (also known as rbGH) in its private label milk brand is part of a nationwide trend among dairy processors, retailers and farmers. Starbucks, Tillamook, Safeway and Chipotle Restaurants have already begun to discontinue the hormone and California Dairies Inc., which produces nearly 10 percent of the nation’s milk, announced it went rbST-free Aug. 1. read more

Farmers and Consumers are Both Getting Milked by the Dairy Giants

By: Joel Greeno

Grass-based dairy farmer (Kendall, WI) and vice president of Family Farm Defenders

An edited version of this op ed appeared in the Capital Times (Madison, WI) on 8/2/07 and in the Topeka Capital-Journal (Topeka, KS) on 8/17/07

Despite recent media hype, farmers are not getting rich off record prices in the dairy case. The cost of milk has gone up 50-60 cents in the last few months, with consumers paying close to $4 per gallon in Los Angeles, Chicago and New Orleans. But dairy farmers are still getting less than half of that money - about $1.60 per gallon. Rising fuel costs and ethanol corn demands are partly to blame. Intense drought has also meant wilting pastures and hay crops. For the first time ever the creek that normally waters my cows has dried up, and as a result my milk production has dropped 50% this summer. But the real culprit behind the current dairy crisis remains corporate greed. read more

Joel Greeno (left) and other farmers protest dairy price fixing outside the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) in Chicago

Family Farm Defenders' Free Range French Roast Coffee Now Available!

In conjunction with Just Coffee, Madison's only 100% fair trade 100% worker owned coffee roaster, Family Farm Defenders is proud to offer its own fundraiser coffee.

Free Range French Roast coffee is grown by the Fondo Paez Co-op in Colombia. Since 1992 Fondo Paez has been working to recover indigenous knowledge in their community through sustainable agriculture. Now you can enjoy freshly roasted fair trade coffee and also support food sovereignty work around the world!

Our Free Range French Roast coffee sells for $8.00 for a 12 oz. bag, plus shipping. If you would like to place a bulk order, please contact our office for a wholesale discount.

Dispatch from the Border -

Anti-Immigrant Debate Nested In Capitol Hill, While Arrests and Deportations Terrorize Immigrant Communities

By Carlos Marentes, Border Agricultural Workers Project (El Paso, TX)

Excerpted from the July 2007 Food Sovereignty E-Newsletter of the National Family Farm Coalition - for a full copy of the newsletter, visit: http://www.nffc.net/

While national debate on immigration reform continues after a disasterous hault in negotiations on Capitol Hill, the US Department of Homeland Security has intensified a campaign to hunt, arrest and deport undocumented workers and their families. read more

Immigration 101 - Myth vs Reality

For a basic factsheet to help counteract xenophobia in your community, click here

Pet Food, Human Food – Both Easy Prey for Global Food Giants

By: John E. Peck executive director, Family Farm Defenders

A version of this article was printed in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (WI) on Sat. 5/12/07, in the Contra Costa Times (CA) on Sun. 5/13/07, and in the St. Cloud Times (MN) on Fri. 8/3/07

Back in early March when it was first revealed that pet food across the U.S. contained Chinese wheat and rice gluten laced with melamine, many expected the Bush White House to take swift action, recalling the deadly products and tracking down the source of the contamination for prosecution. Instead, the FDA deferred to industry and its dubious self-policing capacity. The upshot was the death nationwide of thousands of dogs and cats, and the dumping of recalled pet food into livestock rations destined for human mouths. By late April federal officials were doing a second round of damage control, contacting pork and poultry producers in nine states about melamine tainted feedstocks and culling suspected animals. Unfortunately, some livestock could not be recalled since they were already on their way to market and people’s plates.read more

Uninformed Consent: What and Where, Too Much to Ask?

By: Debra Eschmeyer, Program Director, National Family Farm Coalition

April 25, 2007

During my last trip down the grocery freezer aisle, I chose the Breyers Low Fat Double-Churned, Extra Creamy Chocolate ice cream. I avoided the calorie count, but checked the ingredients: “genetically-modified fish ‘antifreeze’ proteins from the blood of ocean pout.”

Suddenly, I’m not so hungry. read more

Monsanto - How Now Brown Cow?

by: John E. Peck

Posted on Madison Indymedia 3/18/07 www.madisonindymedia.org

After decades of being consumed in the U.S., Monsanto's recombinant bovine growth hormone (rBGH) may be headed to the technological dustbin due to human health concerns. Will this be the fate of other genetically modified organisms (GMOs)? read more...

Farmers, Cows, Bees Win Legal Victory Against Monsanto’s Introduction of GE Alfalfa

By: John E. Peck, executive director of Family Farm Defenders

Back in April 2004 Monsanto submitted a federal petition for commercial introduction of “Round-Up Ready” (RR) alfalfa in the U.S, and after a sixty day public comment period the USDA determined that this herbicide resistant alfalfa variety would have no significant environmental impact, formally approving its commercial introduction in June 2005. By fall 2005 Monsanto had obtained approval for export of RR alfalfa into Mexico, and was working to obtain the same from a host of other countries including Canada, Japan, Korea and Taiwan. On March 12, 2007, though, federal judge, Charles Breyer, of the northern CA district ordered an immediate injunction against U.S. sale of RR alfalfa, having earlier ruled back on Feb. 13th, 2007 that the USDA failed to conduct a full environmental impact study. read more...

On Aug. 6th, 2007 the USDA established a tollfree hotline for farmers to call to find out whether or not GE alfalfa is still being grown in their vicinity, so they can avoid possible contamination. That number is 866-724-6408 and is staffed from 9 am - 5 pm Eastern Standard Time, Monday thorugh Friday (except holidays).

Press Coverage of the Nyélení Food Sovereignty Forum 2007 in Sélingué, Mali, West Africa

Posted 3/8/07 on Madison Indymedia: http://madison.indymedia.org/newswire/display/55643/index.php

Wajid Jenkins interviews Anna Lappe for WORT's Compost Pile 3/8/07 http://www.radio4all.net/index.php?op=download&program_id=22131&file_id=38386&nav=&session=anonymous

JoAnne Pow!ers interviews John Peck for WORT's Eight O'Clock Buzz 3/5/07 http://lists.wort-fm.org/parchive/mp3/wort_070305_080001buzzmon.mp3

Mali, A Country in Search of Food Sovereignty

Dafne Melo, Special Brasil de Fato Reporter interviews Mamadou Goita, one of the Malian organizers of the Nyeleni Forum and member of the Institute for Research and Promotion of Development Alternatives (IRPAD).read more...

Unconventional Gathering

Supara Janchitfa reports for the Bangkok Post (3/18/07) that the Nyeleni 2007 Forum for Food Sovereignty in Mali was not your usual global conference of diplomats and policy makers; the six-day programme initiated by and for the underprivileged worldwide was marked by a spirit of international solidarity read more...

Real World Radio coverage: http://www.radiomundoreal.fm/rmr/?q=en/taxonomy/term/178

Some mainstream media coverage: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/6387975.stm http://www.bangkokpost.com/180307_Perspective/18Mar2007_pers009.php http://www.bangkokpost.com/180307_Perspective/18Mar2007_pers010.php

For related news, commentaries and photos on Nyeleni, visit:

Nyeleni 2007: http://www.nyeleni2007.org/

John Peck's photos from the forum: http://www.flickr.com/photos/johnpecknyeleniforum/

Getcha Grub On: http://grubbook.blogspot.com/2007_02_01_archive.html

Anna Lappe's photos from the forum: http://www.flickr.com/photos/annalappe/sets/72157594553730855/show/

World Hunger Year: http://www.worldhungeryear.org/international/nyeleni_2007.asp

Christina Schiavoni's photos from the forum: http://picasaweb.google.com/maureenkel/MaliAlbum

Grassroots International: http://www.grassrootsonline.org/weblog/labels/Ny=C3=A9l=C3=A9ni.html

Food First http://www.foodfirst.org/node/1652

Report Back from Nyélení Food Sovereignty Forum 2007 – Sélingué, Mali, West Africa

by: John E. Peck

March 5th, 2007

From Feb. 23rd – Feb. 28th I had the exciting opportunity to participate in the Nyélení Food Sovereignty Forum near Sélingué, Mali, in West Africa. I was chosen as one of about 20 invited participants from the U.S. and ended up serving as one of the staff liaisons for the North American delegation (50 people total from the U.S., Canada, Mexico). I think I was mostly chosen for this role because of my African experience and the fact that I could speak French and Portuguese, and understand Spanish.

Thankfully, all the formal sessions were simultaneously translated into English, French, Spanish, and Bambara (the local language) and many of the delegations brought their own translators for other languages (Nepalese, Indonesian, Arabic, Japanese, Hindi, etc.) Alltold, there were over 600 participants from 80+ countries that converged near Sélingué, Mali about a two hour drive from the capital, Bamako, near the border with Guinea. Named after a farmer heroine from West African folklore in order to celebrate the critical role women still play in agriculture today, the Nyélení forum was organized by several international grassroots organizations, including Via Campesina, Friends of the Earth, World Forum of Fisher Peoples, le Reseau des Organisations Paysannes et de Producteurs de l’Afrique de l’Ouest (ROPPA – Network of Farmers and Producers Organization of West Africa) and the World March for Women, to name a few read more...

Nyélení 2007! –

Wisconsin Family Farm Defenders Travel to Mali, West Africa to Participate in Grassroots Food Sovereignty Forum

For Immediate Release: Fri. Feb. 16th

Contact:

John Kinsman 608-986-3815

John Peck 608-260-0900 familyfarmdefenders@yahoo.com

Jessica Roe 202-543-5675 jroe@nffc.net

John Kinsman, a dairy farmer from La Valle and president of Family Farm Defenders, along with John Peck, executive director of FFD from Madison, will be leaving for Mali in West Africa next Tues., Feb. 20th, returning on March 1st, to attend an international forum hosted by Via Campesina on the topic of food sovereignty (www.nyeleni2007.org) Over 500 participants are expected from 90+ countries across the globe with close to 50 delegates invited to attend from Canada, U.S. and Mexico.

Prior to leaving for West Africa, Kinsman and Peck along with dozens of other farm and food activists from across the continent will be attending the winter meeting of the National Family Farm Coalition in Washington, DC (www.nffc.net), culminating in a send off celebration for the North America Nyélení Delegation at the Busboy and Poets - 2021 14th St. NW in Washington, DC – beginning at 4:30 pm on Mon. Feb. 19th.

The Nyélení forum will occur in Sélingué, a small town located 140 km from Bamako near the border with Guinea in a specially constructed eco-village that will be used in the future as a training center by Malian organisations. Organizers chose the name Nyélení out of respect for a legendary farming heroine and to honor the dominant role women still play in agriculture today. Via Campesina hosted the first international food sovereignty forum back in 1996, and since then the concept has become increasingly accepted as a viable alternative to neoliberal globalization. Unlike food security, food sovereignty valorizes the principles of grassroots democracy, cultural diversity, social justice, fair prices, living wages, and local control. It also asserts that healthy food is a basic human right, not just a market commodity.

In preparation for the Nyélení forum, Family Farm Defenders has produced a wide variety of materials promoting the concept of food sovereignty. These include a list of twenty things one can do at the local level in the U.S. for food sovereignty (www.familyfarmdefenders.org), as well as an updated 2007 edition of the Wisconsin local food and fair trade directory, published jointly with the Wisconsin Network for Peace and Justice and available for download free on their website (www.wnpj.org).

Both John Kinsman and John Peck will be available to share their perspectives on farmer to farmer solidarity and international food sovereignty at various community events and for the wider media upon their return from Mali, West Africa.

For more on the Nyélení Food Sovereignty Forum visit: http://www.nyeleni2007.org/

20 Ways to Promote Local Food Sovereignty

For a list of things you can do at the community level, read more...

Food Sovereignty or Food Dependence?

By: Jim Goodman, organic dairy farmer, Wonewoc, WI

Posted on Feb. 8, 2007 on Madison Indymedia (www.madisonindymedia.org)

The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) documents 852 million people world-wide as being food insecure, with approximately 25,000 deaths due to starvation daily. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) states that 11% of US households are food insecure. The FAO states that “food security exists when all people, at all times, have access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food to meet their dietary needs and food preferences for an active, healthy life”. USDA defines food security as “access by all people at all times to enough nutritious food for an active healthy life”. What happened to “safe” food meeting peoples “food preferences”? Not important according to USDA. Not surprising either, in this society, profits are more important than people. read more...

Second Annual Wisconsin Fair Trade & Local Food Directory is now available!

Family Farm Defenders (FFD), in conjunction with the Wisconsin Network for Peace and Justice (WNPJ) has just released an expanded 2007 second edition of Wisconsin's first ever statewide fair trade and local food directory.

The nearly 100 page directory includes listings of family farms, locally owned retailers, coffeeshops, restaurants, bakeries, sweat-free apparel stores, as well as bioregional recipes, nutritional information, and educational sidebars.

Spiral bound copies are available for $10.00 each (+$2.00 for postage) from either FFD (1019 Williamson St. #B, Madison, WI, 53703 #608-260-0900) or WNPJ (122 State St. #402, Madison, WI 53703 #608-250-9240).

An online version of the directory is also available for free at: http://www.wnpj.org/

This is a work in progress, so we welcome your feedback! Any suggested additions and corrections to listings for future editions, as well as other comments, can be directed to the FFD office or sent via email to: familyfarmdefenders@yahoo.com

Why Cloned Food Should Be Inedible and Unacceptable

By: John E. Peck, executive director, Family Farm Defenders

(a version of this article was printed in the Jan. 10, 2007 edition of Country Today)

Last I knew, the mission of the FDA was to protect the public’s health by assuring the safety of our nation’s food supply. The FDA’s purpose is NOT to facilitate the dumping of dubious food products onto people’s dinner plates for the sake of corporate profit. That is why I found it so disturbing to see the recent Country Today editorial by Scott Schultz (1/3/07), basically lauding the FDA for its decision that byproducts from cloned livestock are safe for human consumption. read more...

For a consumer factsheet on why cloning is bad news, click here

Wisconsin Farmers Add Voice to Call for Peace in Washington DC

Family Farm Defenders and Farms not Arms Demand End to Senseless War

For Immediate Release

Fri. Jan. 26, 2007

Contacts: Randy Jasper Family Farm Defenders #608-553-0596 or #608-475-1534 John Kiefer Family Farm Defenders and Farms Not Arms #608-393-7076 John Kinsman National Family Farm Coalition #608-986-3815 Douglas Stevenson Farms Not Arms #931-626-4035

On Sat. Jan. 27th Wisconsin family farmers will be lending their voice to hundreds of thousands of others in demanding an end to war. Some are making the long trip to Washington DC, while others will be participating in solidarity rallies in Wisconsin, such as the one scheduled for Noon in Madison at the State Capitol.

Family Farm Defenders was among the first groups to join Farm not Arms when it was launched last year at Farm Aid. The mission of Farms not Arms is to oppose the dangerous cycle of war and terror that now threatens our world, and to urge all countries to refocus their resources on ending hunger, fighting disease, stewarding the environment and protecting our farmland.

One member of Family Farm Defenders from Muscoda who is going to DC is no stranger to such solidarity. Last year Randy Jasper helped drive nine donated tractors down to Mississippi in support of black farmers struggling to recover after Hurricane Katrina. “Somehow we need to stop this stupidity,” noted Jasper. “I have friends and neighbors who are now in the military in Iraq and they tell me they have to drive around and basically provoke people to shoot at them so then the military can respond indiscriminately. This is just a waste of our young people.”

John Kiefer, a dairy farmer from near Sauk City and co-chair of Farms not Arms, is also going to DC to lend his voice. “It is a citizen’s and a farmer’s civic duty,” Kiefer explained, “to seek justice when he sees none. It is especially important to get folks in agriculture more engaged in the worldwide peace movement, since there can be no real peace without access to good food.”

Another dairy farmer from La Valle, WWII veteran, and secretary of the National Family Farm Coalition, John Kinsman will be attending the peace rally in Madison. According to Kinsman, "We, the people, do have a choice. Violence only begets more killing. Many of the victims of war are innocent farmers, elders, women and children and by destroying their livelihoods and their land we only make hunger worse and create fresh conflict. We have an obligation to speak out, and foster friendship instead. If people only understood what is really happening, they would join groups like Farms not Arms and bring about a better world.”

Globalization Needs To Have Rules

by Jim Goodman, dairy farmer (Wonewoc, WI)

Posted on Jan. 8th, 2007 on Madison Indymedia (www.madisonindymedia.org)

Perhaps you have noticed? Lots of US auto workers lost their jobs in 2006, lots of workers in other industries as well, farmers, well we don't expect much anymore and even high-tech workers are feeling the pinch. The minimum wage hasn't gone up since 1997 and according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are currently 6.8 million unemployed (over 8 million if you count those who have given up trying to find a job). Am I missing something here? I thought that globalization and the founding of the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 1995 was supposed to raise everyones ship. Instead it seems most of us are losing ground. read more...

Bringing Fair Trade Home to the U.S.

by: John E. Peck

Dec. 2006/Jan. 2007 issue of the Sustainable Times (www.sustainabletimes.net)

Ever wondered why the fair trade label only applies to products from outside the U.S.? Why are all the fair trade certifies located thousands of miles away from the producers? How can corporations that are so unfair towards workers, farmers, and consumers in the U.S. get away with selling and promoting themselves as fair trade? What ever happened to the idea of applying fair trade principles in our own backyard?

So, What's the Big Deal if Wal-Mart Makes a Mistake?

by Jim Goodman

Madison Indymedia (www.madison.indymedia.org) Posted 12/4/06

That was the question asked by the host on a recent Public Radio call-in show. Her question to her guest from the Cornucopia Institute was in regard to recent charges that Wal-Mart was passing conventional grocery items off as USDA certified organic. A mistake? I doubt it. Seriously, think about it, you start a big push in marketing a new line of high profit products and one of the first things you do is mislabel your products, “accidentally”? As Jim Hightower would say “Do they think we were born with sucker wrappers around our heads?” read more...

Celebrate Food Sovereignty This Holiday Season!

By: John E. Peck, executive director, Family Farm Defenders

The holidays are when many people happily rediscover that there is still culture left in agriculture. A delicious homemade meal of traditional bioregional fare in a relaxed “slow food” atmosphere is often the highlight of any gathering among friends and family this time of year. In fact, it is almost hard to imagine Thanksgiving without turkey, wild rice, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, pumpkin pie – all foods that have become a proud part of the culinary heritage of the Americas. What is sadly missing from many of our holiday celebrations, though, is a hearty affirmation of food sovereignty. read more...

In 2006 the National Family Farm Coalition (NFFC) and Grassroots International collaborated to produce a brochure on food sovereignty featuring farmers' voices, including members of Family Farm Defenders.

To download the English version of this brochure visit: http://grassrootsonline.org/foodsovereignty.pdf

If you would rather have a copy mailed to you, please call our office #608-260-0900.

Milk Protein Concentrate (MPC) - Consumers Must Be Warned!

By: Brenda Cochran and Donna Hall, PA dairy farmers

Milk Protein Concentrate (MPC) sounds OK, but how would it look if we saw the word “glue” on our food and beverage labels? MPC is legal for glue and for industrial uses, but it has never been approved for human consumption. Why then does the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) permit MPC use in any food or beverage without first having this unapproved ingredient tested for safety and nutrition as required by law under federal “Generally Regarded As Safe”(GRAS) status? read more...

Don’t Play With Our Food!

By: Debra Eschmeyer, project director, National Family Farm Coalition

Most everyone has been told to not play with his or her food, yet somehow agribusiness is playing Monopoly with the nation’s food supply. When pouring your next glass of milk, consider who decided what the cow ate and who controls the distribution of profits. One would think the farmer and consumer take the lead roles in managing the supply of safe and healthy food. The farmer should control his or her business while mainly battling unpredictable weather—expecting the price they receive for a quality product to be set by a fair and honest marketplace. However, in today’s market, the lack of competition is wielding just as much force as Mother Nature as witnessed by the recent proposed acquisition of the Chicago Board of Trade by the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) to become the CME Group Inc.—combining the two largest U.S. futures exchanges. read more...

Industrial Agriculture is Leading Us Down the Wrong Road

By: Jim Goodman, organic dairy farmer, Wonewoc, WI

Printed in the Capital Times (Madison, WI) on Mon. Nov. 20th, 2006

Also posted 11/15/06 on Madison Indymedia: http://www.madison.indymedia.org/

Self reliance is not a bad thing. While Emerson's thoughts on “Self Reliance” were controversial enough to get him banned from Harvard University, it seems that most Americans have willingly ceded their own self reliance and therefore their right of choice into the hands of corporate America. They have given up choice in media, health care and even food. Granted, not everyone can or wants to raise their own food. I guess as a farmer, that's good for my business, but I do want them to to care, to take part in the decision of what they eat and how it is grown. Just as it is wrong for the corporate media to only offer part of the news, it is also wrong for the corporate food industry to basically say “shut up and eat”. read more...

Tainted Spinach is Just Another Sign of a Sick Food Farm System

By: John E. Peck

Printed in the Capital Times (Madison, WI) on 10/2/06

A longer updated version was also printed in the Oct. 2006 issue of the Sustainable Times: http://www.sustainabletimes.net/

After a decade of repeated outbreaks and warnings, vegetable growers in the Salinas Valley of CA are now reaping a deadly harvest. Over 170 people nationwide have fallen victim to the deadly O157:H7 strain of E. coli bacteria, with one death confirmed in WI, and a voluntary recall of bagged spinach is now underway. While distant DC officials say it is still OK to eat suspect spinach after cooking at 160 degrees for 15 seconds, those CA health experts on the ground are telling consumers to throw it all out. Recent budget and staff cuts at the federal level have left the majority of food safety inspection and enforcement in the hands of city, county, and state agencies. Ironically enough, the Bush administration is now trying to railroad through Congress the "National Uniformity for Food Act” that would take away this local control over food safety and labeling. read more...

Family Farm Defenders Endorses Farms Not Arms!

Pictured are Family Farm Defender members, Kat Becker and Tony Schultz, outside their newly decorated barn near Athens, WI!

On Sun. Oct. 1st, Farms Not Arms held its first national gathering in conjunction with the Farm Aid event the day before in Camden, NJ.

Speaking at the kickoff event were: Farms Not Arms co-chair, Will Allen, and Kate Deustenberg of Cedar Circle Farm in East Thetford, VT; Farms Not Arms co-chair Michael O'Gorman of Agroproductos Del Cabo, Ensenada, Mexico.; National Family Farm Coalition President and Iowa soybean farmer, George Naylor.; President of Organic Consumers Association. Ronnie Cummins and Wisconsin dairy farmer, John Keifer, representing Family Farm Defenders!

For more info on how you can get involved

in Farms Not Arms visit:

http://www.farmsnotarms.org/

Sen. Feingold and Others Call for a GAO Investigation of Dairy Price Fixing at the CME

July 14, 2006

Washington, D.C.: U.S. Senator Russ Feingold (D-WI) is calling on the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to study if cheese trading on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) is susceptible to price manipulation and suggest improvements that may be needed. Feingold, along with Senators Arlen Specter (R-PA) and Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY), took the lead in writing GAO Comptroller General David Walker requesting the study nearly ten years after price manipulation was uncovered in cheese trading on the old National Cheese Exchange based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. read more...

Coalition Meets on Food Sovereignty

La Crosse Tribune, published 8/1/06

By: Joe Orso

TOMAH, Wis. A rancher came from Montana. From Texas came an organizer for migrant farm workers. A woman from a church in St. Louis came to learn about developing an urban community garden. They and about 50 others gathered this weekend at Cranberry Country Lodge in Tomah for the summer meeting of the National Family Farm Coalition, a Washington, D.C.-based umbrella group for grassroots organizations that work on family farm issues. read more...

The Fall of the WTO!

by: Carlos Marentes

Border Agricultural Workers Project (El Paso, TX) Aug. 1st, 2006

On Monday July 24, 2006, the General Secretary of the World Trade organization, Pascal Lamy, officially announced the suspension of the Doha Round talks. Outside the somber WTO headquarters in Geneva, a large group of La Via Campesina, Fisher Folk Federation, and members of other social movement celebrated the failure of the negotiations and WTO. The organizations publicly stated: “The Doha Round cycle is over, now is the time for food sovereignty.” read more...

Katrina Solidarity Continues As Four More Donated WI Tractors Depart for MS Farmer Co-op

For Immediate Release:

June 5th, 2006

Contact: Randy Jasper – Project Tractor #608-553-0596
Joel Greeno – Project Tractor #608-463-7634
Ben Burkett - Mississippi Association of Cooperatives #601-870-4114
John Peck - Family Farm Defenders #608-260-0900

On Mon. June 5th four more tractors from Wisconsin will be heading south to Mississippi to further strengthen grassroots farmer to farmer relationships which grew out of the devastating aftermath of last year’s hurricanes. Two Olivers, a Case, and an International – along with a chisel plow, disc, field cultivator, and rotary hoe – are destined for the Indian Springs Farmers Association in Sheeplo, MS where they will be redistributed to those co-op members desperately in need of working equipment.

Another load of five WI tractors arrived in Hattiesburg, MS on March 31st, 2006 in conjunction with the annual meeting of Family Farm Defenders hosted by the Mississippi Association of Cooperatives. Over fifty activists from across the nation were on hand to celebrate the tractors’ arrival and the ongoing solidarity they represent. Family Farm Defenders was one of the first family farm groups to respond to Hurricane Katrina last year by sending two biodiesel buses with seven volunteers and over 10,000 pounds of food, medicine, and other relief supplies down to communities in MS, AL, and LA.

Project Tractor as it has been called was the brainchild of Joel Greeno, a dairy farmer near Kendall, WI who drove his Allis Chalmers tractor in Farm Aid’s 20th Anniversary parade through downtown Chicago last September and overheard a MS farmer saying he wished he had one of those so he would no longer have to hoe so many rows by hand.

“Family farmers in the south have been struggling for years – first against slavery and racism and now against unfair policies and unjust prices,” said Randy Jasper, a farmer near Muscoda, WI who volunteered to drive down the second load of tractors on his flatbed semitruck. “Hurricane Katrina just added insult to centuries of injury. We can’t depend upon government assistance any more. The real answer lies in coalition building and farmers working together to save each other.”

Tax deductible donations for Project Tractor and other post-hurricane solidarity work can be sent to: Family Farm Defenders, P.O. Box 1772, Madison, WI 53701

Donated tractors bring cheer to farmers hit hard by Katrina

Hattiesburg American Sat. April 1st, 2006
By Rachel Leifer

SHEEPLO - With a halting first belch from its exhaust pipe, a Wisconsin tractor prepared to take its first ride through Mississippi soil.

The McCormick Farmall was one of five dusty but working tractors unloaded Friday afternoon in front of the Indian Springs Farmers Cooperative in the Sheeplo community near Petal. Representatives of the national Family Farm Defenders had hauled them from southwestern Wisconsin to donate to the Mississippi Association of Cooperatives, a coalition of independent farming cooperatives in 11 counties- many of whose members lost equipment and crops to Hurricane Katrina.

At least two of the tractors are expected to stay at Indian Springs - where farmers like Donnie Pen-Travis said they are sorely needed.

"They might be worth $4,000 or $5,000 to you, but to me they're worth a million bucks," said Pen-Travis, 53, who works a plot of land he said has been in his family for five generations. He beamed as fellow farmers from Wisconsin backed the red and orange vehicles off the back of an 18-wheeler before a crowd of about 50 farmers and pro-organic farming activists.

Photo - Darnelle Burkett with John Peck, John Kinsman and Daisy Garrett

"(Katrina) beat my sugar cane to death," he said, adding that he also lost a tractor and three-and-a-half acres' worth of bell peppers and sugar peas to the Aug. 29 storm's winds and rain.

Family Farm Defenders was in the Pine Belt for its annual conference, which is promoting small farmer solidarity against the pressures of agribusiness and the global marketplace.

"We've all been so excited we could do something that was a way of gaining solidarity with all the farmers in the hurricane area," said John Kinsman, 80, president of FFD and a dairy and tree farmer from Sauk County, Wisc.

The group sent two truckloads of food to the Gulf Coast in Katrina's aftermath, and several supporters on hand had spent the winter volunteering in New Orleans.

Farmer Darnella Burkett said the donation and support will help independent Mississippi farmers maintain economically viable, high quality operations even in the face of hurricane damage and pressure to sell their land.

"It's tough, but we've got to try to hold on to this land," said Burkett, 25, who works on her father's Sheeplo farm and sustained significant storm damage to her fields and equipment.

"My daddy always says, hold on to the land I give you - they're not growing any more."

For an online version of this story, visit: http://www.hattiesburgamerican.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060401/NEWS01/604010308/1002/NEWS17

Not Charity, But Solidarity!

The 2nd Relief Trip of Family Farm Defenders to the Gulf Coast

by Camy Matthay
organic berry farmer, Brooklyn, WI (4/7/06)

Last week, I traveled south to Mississippi and Louisiana with other members of Family Farm Defenders, a national activist organization made up of farmers and consumers concerned with building a safe and sustainable food system. This was the second relief caravan sponsored by Family Farm Defenders to make the trip to the Gulf Coast. Shortly after the aftermath of hurricane Katrina, Family Farm Defenders had organized the first shipment of 10,000 lbs of food and medical aid from their headquarters in Madison, WI. read more...

The Peoples’ Relief Caravan: Family Farm Defenders to the Rescue!

An Account of Grassroots Relief at Work in the Gulf Coast

Harvest season in the Midwest is hurricane season in the Gulf of Mexico. Late August is a busy time in our gardens, with tomatoes to process, corn to pick, and compost to turn. Alongside dedicated friends and family, I help run an organic farm on the city limits of Madison, Wisconsin. This August, 2005, our small collective was working beautifully, canning sauce and husking ears into the night. Satisfied and exhausted by each day’s labor, I was almost oblivious to the rest of the world; but on August 29, the radio in the greenhouse announced that Hurricane Katrina had made landfall 60 miles east of New Orleans, Louisiana. On Thurs. Sept 15th, 2005 seven farmers and other community activists left Madison, WI in two buses loaded down with emergency food, medicine, and other supplies. Their destination - the Southern Federation of Cooperative's relief warehouse in Epes, AL followed by subsequent stops at the Organic Valley "Kickapoo Kitchen" in Waveland, MS and the Veterans for Peace encampment in Covington, LA. read more...

What's New

Poland Declares Itself GMO-Free!

THE NON-GMO SOURCE (V. 6 #4) - April 6, 2006 http://www.non-gmoreport.com/

Speaking at the recent Bio- Fach conference in Nuremberg, Germany, Chris Wietrzny, a representative with International Coalition to Protect the Polish Countryside, said that all 16 regions in Poland have declared themselves GM free. “We worked with local regions and wanted people to feel that the future of their regions are in their hands,” he said.

Wietrzny said Poland has two million small family farms and rich biodiversity that people want to preserve. He also said growing GM and non-GM crops together is not possible. “We don’t believe in any possibility of coexistence of GMO and non-GMO.”

According to Agence France Presse, The Polish government recently said that it was opposed to the production of genetically modified crops in the country, but also said it favored importing GM food under strict conditions.

A government statement said, “Poland should be in principle a country free of genetically modified organisms (GM Os).” Further, the government is “against the introduction of trade in genetically modified animal fodder and to the cultivation of genetically modified maize, rape, sugar beet, potatoes and soya.”

Public Citizen Releases Results of Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Request About Mad Cow

On Aug. 18th, 2005 Public Citizen released the results of Freedom of Information (FOIA) Act request for USDA documents related to Mad Cow. The results are rather disturbing and hint at a coverup to minimize public awareness of the extent of the problem in the United States and the current threat to farmers and consumers. read more...

Action Alerts

Stop Federal Preemption of State Food Safety Laws!

Contact Your Senators TODAY to defend local control over food safety!

Congressional Switchboard: #202-224-3121

Tell them to oppose the National Uniformity for Food Act!

On March 2nd the House passed H.R. 4167, the “National Uniformity for Food Act,” which would basically overturn any state or local food safety laws that are not "identical" to federal law. Hundreds of laws and regulations that are tougher than federal rules are now at risk... read more...

Demand an Investigation of Price Fixing at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange

To mark Via Campesina's International Day of Farmer Solidarity of April 18th, 2005, dozens of family dairy farmers and other food sovereignty activists protested outside the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. You can take action, too. read more...

Opinion Items

Bush Team Squeezes Farmers, Stifles Dissent

By: Jim Goodman
Sun. Feb. 26, 2006 Capital Times (Madison, WI)

The U.S. Department of Agriculture predicts a drop of 23 percent in income for the farming sector this year, on the heels of last year's 12 percent drop. Proposed cuts in farm subsidy payments will account for a significant portion of the decrease in income, a fact farmers will have to get used to in a globalized free trade economy. Much like the rest of the nation's working class, we will be expected to live without a financial safety net. While subsidy programs are at best a very poor solution to a very big problem (low farm income), the real beneficiary of the subsidy program has always been the corporate grain buyers and the dairy and livestock processors. Farmers only want a fair price for what they produce, not government programs that encourage overproduction of low-priced commodities. read more...

Family Farmer Wish List 2005

St. Cloud Times (St. Cloud, MN), Jan. 16, 2005
By John E. Peck
Tis the season to reflect upon the past and wish for better in the future, and those who support family farming have a rather long “to-do” list for 2005. Unlike such noble ideals as peace on earth and goodwill towards everyone, these goals are actually quite practical and achievable in the coming New Year. By planting the seeds now, we could all enjoy the fruits of such a home-grown sustainable agriculture agenda for years to come. read more...

Corporate Agribusiness Exposes

Welcome to Whole Foods – The “Walmart” of Organic

Whole Foods is the largest retail giant in the natural food sector in the U.S. with 168 stores nationwide (plus in Canada and Britain) and annual gross sales now exceeding $4.6 billion. In fact, Whole Foods has grown twice as fast the leading corporate grocer, Walmart, over the last four years. Started in a humble storefront at the corner of 8th and Rio Grande in Austin, TX back in 1978 by self-described “free market” libertarian and current CEO, John Mackay, Whole Foods grew parasitically throughout the 1990s.read more

Know Your Dairy Giants - Dean Foods

Dean Foods has been dubbed the “Microsoft” of the dairy industry for its aggressive expansion and leveraged buyout of competitors. The unprecedented merger with Suiza in 2001 was made possible by Dairy Farmers of America (DFA), which had already sold off its Southern Foods Group fluid milk outfit to Suiza in 2000. In exchange, DFA acquired a third stake in Dean’s fluid milk business and was able to place DFA representatives on Dean’s board of directors. Farmers and consumers all pay the price, though, when the nation’s largest dairy processor is in bed with the nation’s largest dairy producer. read more

Wal-Mart: the Quintessential Suburban Nightmare!

Wal-Mart is the world’s largest retailer – with 1489 mega-stores, 1397 Super Centers, 532 Sam's Clubs, and 56 neigborhood markets in the U.S alone as of 2003, and close to a tousand more abroad from Argentina to Germany. In fact, Wal-Mart is now the single largest private employer in the U.S. with 1.1 million "associates" and higher earnings than the gross national product (GNP) of 150 countries! In 2003 Wal-mart sold 19% of all groceries in the U.S. and recorded $9 billion in profits. Of the top fifteen richest people in the world, five are Wal-Mart heirs. The Walton family with its $90 billion is ranked among the richest in the world – along with Microsoft’s Bill Gates, and Saudi Royal Prince, Alwaleed Bin Talal Alsaud. read more...

Press Articles

Frances Moore Lappé Visits Madison

On Wed. Nov. 16th, 2005 acclaimed author and activist, Frances Moore Lappé, visited Madison with her new book, Democracy's Edge, and hosted a well-attended fundraiser to benefit Family Farm Defenders and the Center for Media and Democracy. Since her 1971 groundbreaking book, Diet for a Small Planet, Lappé has become a tireless champion for local food, economic justice, and what she aptly calls "living democracy" read more...

Family Farm Defenders on WPR

On June 19th, 2005 John Kinsman, president of Family Farm Defenders joined Kevin Danaher, co-founder of Global Exchange, & Mark Kastel, founder of the Cornucopia Institute, for a look at "how the world's farmers are turning to fair trade to help put a human face on the food industry" with Jean Feraca.

You can listen to their interview at: http://wpr.org/HereOnEarth/archives.cfm

Policy Papers

State of Agriculture in Wisconsin

Wisconsin’s reknowned natural heritage, economic vitality and quality of life are now under attack by the corporatization of agriculture. Increasing vertical integration and horizontal consolidation in the food sector means the loss of a competitive market and food sovereignty. Whereas a century ago farmers received 38 cents of every consumer food dollar, now it is down to just 19 cents. Family farmers have been reduced to “price takers” at the mercy of food cartels. read more...

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