Farm Bill, Farm Bill, Farm Bill…oh my!! We hear about it in the media, but how many people in our country know what this GIANT bill does? Well, this historically bipartisan bill is a major piece of legislation known as the Federal Agriculture Reform and Risk Management Act, the FARRM Act. For the sake of sanity, I will refer to it from here on out as FARRM.  I had no idea how complicated this bill was until I did a policy analysis on just one section of FARRM, specifically the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as Food Stamps. SNAP is the oldest and largest nutrition assistance policy that exists in the U.S. to reduce the social problem of food insecurity and hunger. You might be thinking, “What is SNAP doing in legislation about agriculture?” I thought this at first :)

Ultimately, in 1939, Roosevelt formalized the food distribution policy within FARRM as a key component of the New Deal. This initiative, called the “Food Stamps Plan,” allowed individuals and families to purchase blue and orange paper stamps that they could use to buy food, household items, and surplus goods at affordable costs.[2] A variation of this program still exists today – SNAP.

                                                                 FARRM of Today
Today, FARRM has purposefully been turned into a large, intimidating, and complex mass of national food and agriculture policies. It is reauthorized every 5 to 7 years. While the latest reauthorization was muddled with conflict on all sides, politicians ultimately pushed through the FARRM Act of 2013, all 15 titles in tow. Please scroll through the document below to check out specific Titles and the policies they cover:

Ahhhhhhhhh, holy mackerel! So what does all this mean for us common folk? To summarize…they want us confused :) Collectively, the programs represented in FARRM directly and indirectly impact the types of crops grown, nutrition assistance for those struggling with hunger, control of animal diseases and waste generated, labor needed, bio-fuels and energy, and chemicals used to produce our food. All of these policies work together and seriously impact the health and well-being of humans, animals, plants, and ecosystems worldwide! 

                                                               FARRM to Health 
Until the latest reauthorization in 2013, FARRM has been considered a bipartisan bill suggesting a “political marriage” of farm and food policy to work together to address concerns about nutrition and support rural health.[3] But this time, the House of Representatives wanted to separate SNAP from FARRM, which was met with stern objections from many leaders. Some sources of conflict included the high cost of SNAP at a time when deficit reduction is needed, and assumptions about the worthiness of SNAP recipients. Chances are many of us know people who use SNAP because, in 2012, 46.2 million people, or about one in seven Americans, were enrolled in SNAP to meet their food needs.[4] Nearly 50% of these beneficiaries were children.[5]  Below are some interesting links to FARRM policy and news within the Senate and House of Representatives:

• http://agriculture.house.gov/farmbill
• http://www.ag.senate.gov/newsroom/press/release/five-things-you-should-know-about-the-new-bipartisan-farm-bill-

While there may be some positive changes in FARRM 2013, many have grave consequences including the $9 billion in cuts towards SNAP over the next ten years; the provisions that consolidate and cut numerous farm subsidy programs, and use this money to fund crop insurance programs; and the new subsidy programs for corporate farms/agribusiness that support further production of commodity crops rather than specialty crops.

To be honest, part of me was a little disappointed when SNAP did not split from FARRM because I saw this as an opportunity for the largest nutrition assistance program to move into a more appropriate committee, such as the United States Department of Health and Human Services. However, this is not reality. So, perhaps we have to work together to create new opportunities for FARRM to act as a public health tool by strengthening environmental protection and fighting for social and economic justice. We can do this at the local level by taking control of our own food system again through local community gardening and agriculture!

Happy 2014 and welcome back to The Growing Project’s blog! Over the next few months, I will follow current events, talk to community members, learn from inspiring local organizations, and take a closer look at some of the tough problems our communities are facing. I hope you choose to stay tuned for future posts that will dive into the contradictions and complexities of our food system, food insecurity, and food waste. Ultimately, I hope to learn together how we can achieve global food justice!

So what exactly is food insecurity? According to the USDA, the social problem of food insecurity is defined as poverty-related insecurity around the physical and economic lack of access to adequate food for an active healthy lifestyle.[1] This can cause life threatening physical, neurological, psychological, and social consequences. If most of us think back, we can recall at some point learning about Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs theory. In order to move up in the pyramid, you must achieve the previous level.[2] See below for a quick refresher!

Like our need for water and air, FOOD is a critical physiological need that humans must fulfill before they can begin to feel any sense of safety and security in their world. Because of this, I believe that access to healthy, fresh food is a human right. So shouldn’t I be grateful that we live in a world where there is more than enough food to feed everyone an adequate amount every day?! Unfortunately, injustices in the system do not allow this. Hunger and food insecurity persist at staggering rates world wide and in the United States. With over 7 billion people who NEED food to survive, the numbers below are scary.

Did you know?

• In 2012, 870 million people of the 7.1 billion people in the world, or 1 in 8, were suffering from chronic hunger/undernourishment. [3]
• In 2012, 50 million people, or 14.5% of all United States households were experiencing chronic food insecurity. Of this, about 20 million were children, which is 22.5% of the entire U.S. child population!!![4] This equates to about 1 in 6 adults and 1 in 4 children.
• Consumers, retailers, and restaurants throw away more that 100 billion pounds of edible food each year![5]
• Even here in Larimer County Colorado, 13.5% of the population or 40,080 residents, and 17.7%, or 11,200 children under the age of 18, are struggling with chronic hunger.[6]

So what can we do to turn this trend around? First and foremost, education and awareness are key! Many local organizations, such as the Larimer County Food Bank, are spreading just that. Click on the links below to check out facts from the Map the Meal Gap Study and an interactive map that will show you just how pervasive national hunger is:

“Map The Meal Gap” stats and info: http://www.foodbanklarimer.org/About%20Hunger/Hunger101/Map%20the%20Meal%20Gap.aspx

The Interactive Map:
http://feedingamerica.org/hunger-in-america/hunger-studies/map-the-meal-gap.aspx

In my opinion, the Divided States of America has a desperate need at this time to let go of our incessant individualism. I think it is making us a stagnant, apathetic nation. We must come together, practice collective compassion, and begin to build strong communities where people look out for one another. And what better way to start to do that than to make sure that everyone has their fundamental need for food met! I am excited to practice this through my internship with The Growing Project (TGP) where I get to be part of social, political, and environmental action. Through five diverse programs, TGP ensures that people get to participate in community-growing efforts, have access to healthy nutritious fruits and vegetables, learn therapeutic gardening techniques, and are getting outside having fun in nature! Ultimately, I think we can work collaboratively to create strong, sustainable local, national, and even global food systems that view food not as a commodity, but as the necessity for life that it is. TGP hopes to work with any and all of you along the way to reduce food insecurity and food waste simultaneously! 

We always welcome volunteers and would love to see tons of people at our upcoming events:

1) Season Extender Workshop on Saturday 2/22/2014 from 1-3pm  (http://www.thegrowingproject.org/tgp-university.html)

2) Food For Thought Film Festival Fundraiser 3/6/2014 from 7-10p (http://www.thegrowingproject.org/events.html)

Thank you for reading and have a wonderful day!!

Footnotes:
[1] Larson, N.I., & Story, M.T. (2011). Food Insecurity and Weight Status among U.S. Children and Families. American Journal of Preventative Medicine, 40(2), 166-173. doi:10.1016/j.amepre.2010.10.028
[2] Maslow, A.H. (1943). A Theory of Human Motivation. Psychological Review, 50(4), 370-396. doi: 10.1037/h0054346
[3] World Hunger Education Service. (2013). 2013 World Hunger and Poverty Statistics. Retrieved from URL http://www.worldhunger.org/articles/Learn/world%20hunger%20facts%202002.htm
[4] Center for the Study of the Presidency and Congress. (2012). SNAP to Health: A Fresh Approach to Improving Nutrition in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. Retrieved from http://www.snaptohealth.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/CSPC-SNAP-Report.pdf
[5] Karger, H.J., & Stoesz, D. (2013). American Social Welfare Policy: A Pluralist Approach (7th Ed). Boston, MA: Allyn and Bacon. ISBN-10: 0-205-92240-6
[6] Feeding America. (2011). Map the Meal Gap. Retrieved from URL http://www.foodbanklarimer.org/About%20Hunger/Hunger101/Map%20the%20Meal%20Gap.aspx

Hi, my name is Carolyn. I am currently in my second semester of graduate school as a Masters of Social Work student at CSU. Over the next semester, I get to complete a field internship with The Growing Project! I am so excited! I am from Albuquerque New Mexico originally, but so far I love Fort Collins and Colorado in general! In my free time, I love to rock climb (mainly outdoors, but the gym is ok), as well as camp, hike, and garden. I love to bake, ride horses, and play with my composting worms. I have never written a blog, but I am excited for the opportunity! Read at your own risk, for opinions may be shared :)