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Statement: Budget Reconciliation Bill Threatens Passage of Much-Needed Farm Bill
On May 22, 2025, House Republicans passed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. This budget reconciliation legislation would slash critical support systems for families, increase funding for agricultural subsidies inaccessible to most farmers, and imperil the likelihood of farm bill reauthorization. As the bill moves through Congress, the Ohio Ecological Food and Farm Association (OEFFA) urges the Senate to reject it and its potential to devastate the farm bill coalition and threaten the passage of a desperately needed new farm bill. Since the reauthorization of the 2018 Farm Bill, the cost of living has increased, requiring more families and communities to stretch resources and make difficult decisions when purchasing food.…
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Farmers, Organizations Impacted by Funding Freeze Ask USDA to Honor Farmer Contracts
Since January, billions in lawfully signed federal funding contracts have been frozen for review or cancelled. As the situation unfolded, the Ohio Ecological Food and Farm Association (OEFFA) surveyed our community to assess the impact. We interviewed three respondents, briefly capturing their experiences in the short video below [transcript here]. As farmers prepare for each growing season, they must make decisions with a large degree of uncertainty in the outcomes. How the weather, market, seeds, and soil respond is out of their hands. Despite their experience and planning, every year is a gamble that their yields will be what they need. Farmers must always tolerate uncertainty; however, this growing season…
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Mental Health Awareness Month: Resources for Farmers
May is Mental Health Awareness Month, making it a good time to center our farmers and recognize all they go through to feed our communities and steward our land. Farmers carry a lot on their shoulders—climate unpredictability, market fluctuations, stress, isolation, and uncertainty. This is a heavy load to bear alone. That’s why we’ve prepared some mental health resources for farmers. If you are experiencing a crisis, call 988 to talk to a caring counselor. You are not alone. Breaking the Stigma Agriculture is Ohio’s top industry. Farmers give their all to keep the industry strong and our communities fed. Many factors are out of farmers’ control, and that can…
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Member Spotlight: OEFFA Authors
Originally published in the Winter 2025 edition of the OEFFA newsletter. As rich as the lands we grow on, the OEFFA community is also an abundant source of education and inspiration. We are fortunate to have members who share their expertise in myriad ways, including through the written word. For this member spotlight, we connected with three OEFFA authors. Deborah Fleming, Ashland County Deborah Fleming is an important voice for Ohio agriculture and our environment. The first essay she wrote was inspired by an interaction that many of us could likely relate to. After telling someone she was from Ohio, she was met with their grimacing face. Ohio has a…
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Member Spotlight: Yellowbird Foodshed
Originally published in the Autumn 2024 edition of the OEFFA newsletter. In many ways, Yellowbird Foodshed is a model for how our food system should work. Local, sustainable farmers are fairly paid and have stable access to the market, and eaters can access healthy food that connects them to home. A foodshed, after all, is the region that produces food for its population. For Yellowbird Foodshed, that population is Ohioans. As I toured their Mount Vernon, Ohio facility, Yellowbird Foodshed (YBFS) co-founder Benji Ballmer pointed out that it had once housed antiques. When Ballmer first arrived, he brought a dry-erase board to his new office and wrote: “Mission: to decentralize…
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First Annual Ohio Soil Health Week to Take Place November 10-16
From November 10-16, 2024, the Ohio Ecological Food and Farm Association (OEFFA), members of its Ohio Soil Health Initiative (OSHI), and partners will celebrate the inaugural Ohio Soil Health Week. The weeklong, statewide celebration honors and raises awareness about the importance of Ohio’s soils and those who steward them. It will include outreach, education opportunities, and events to elevate this valuable natural resource. The official designation of Ohio Soil Health Week has been introduced as an amendment to House Bill 162 and is sponsored by Ohio Sen. Tim Schaffer (OH-20). This follows years of advocacy by OEFFA and OSHI to advance soil health legislation in the Ohio General Assembly, drawing…
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2024 Drought Relief Resources
From early harvests to closed pumpkin patches to increased risk of combine fires, Ohio’s prolonged drought is impacting all facets of agriculture. As of October 18, 2024, 49 Ohio counties have been declared primary disaster counties, based on the U.S. Drought Monitor. With conditions unlike any we’ve seen in recent decades, many Ohio counties have been declared primary natural disaster areas. There are resources to support farmers through these trying times. We will regularly update this post as resources become available. If you know of another type of available support that should be included on this list, please email heather@oeffa.org. On Thursday, October 17, OEFFA hosted a virtual Drought Community…
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Member Spotlight: The Stratton Family behind Truest Farms
Originally published in the Summer 2024 edition of the OEFFA newsletter. “It’s been great. It’s been a lot of momentum. We’re doubling and tripling each year,” shared Cory Stratton during my first visit to Truest Farms in May 2023. The Champaign County farm is co-owned by Cory and his father, Mark, but it’s truly a family-run operation. Cory’s high school sweetheart and wife Kirsten uses her background as a veterinary technician to support the pasture-raised livestock, and their five-year-old daughter Claire enjoys playing with the chicks and pushing the chicken tractor. Spanning 21 acres, the regenerative farm is unrecognizable from its previous life planted in conventional corn and soy. All…
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Status-Quo House Farm Bill Draft Falls Short on OEFFA’s Member-Driven Priorities
In the early hours of May 24, the House Agriculture Committee advanced its farm bill, the Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2024 (FFNSA), out of committee. This is long-awaited movement for a bill that should have passed last year but the proposed legislation misses the mark. The Ohio Ecological Food and Farm Association (OEFFA) joins many in the sustainable food and agriculture space in demanding a farm bill that does more to level the playing field for farmers, protect vital nutrition support, and equip producers with tools to address the climate crisis. The FFNSA is a 942-page discussion draft that was released on May 17 in advance of…
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Member Spotlight: Pam Mack of L Marie Ltd
Originally published in the Spring 2024 edition of the OEFFA newsletter. Years ago, Pam Mack began a heartfelt mission to pay tribute to her late daughter: to grow and provide healthy, organic vegetables for everyone. L Marie Ltd is an organic farming company that prioritizes promoting the well-being of the current generation while ensuring sustainability for future generations. Located in Richland County, the farm covers five acres, with approximately half of the land dedicated to cultivating an extensive variety of vegetables. This includes collard greens, kale, Swiss chard, onions, leeks, tomatoes, peppers, squash, beets, zucchini, okra, cucumbers, bush beans, and more. The farm features 40 100-foot rows and 19 raised…
Ecological Food and Farm News
