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OEFFA Policy Announces 2024 Film Screening Series
The Ohio Ecological Food and Farm Association’s (OEFFA) Policy Program and its generous partners invite you to the 2024 OEFFA Policy Film Screening Series. The series features a curated selection of films that explore the many facets of our food and farming systems. Highlighting global problems and featuring local voices, the series will raise awareness, inspire dialogue, and empower positive change. Following each film (aside from Digging In, at the OEFFA Conference), there will be an expert-led panel discussion to spark conservation and inspire us to work together for policy change. The screenings are free and open to the public (but we encourage you to register). Closed captioning will be…
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OEFFA Policy Program Transition
Originally published in the Autumn 2023 edition of the OEFFA newsletter. After nine distinguished years at OEFFA, Policy Director Amalie Lipstreu is leaving to pursue an exciting opportunity with the California Climate and Agriculture Network. Amalie is a visionary leader, a passionate advocate, a generous mentor, and a compassionate friend. The growth in OEFFA’s policy program, our increasing power and influence in the Statehouse and on the Hill, and our expanded capacity to support and uplift farmer leaders are the fruits of her hard work and leadership. She is a true giant of the food and farm movement and OEFFA is grateful for her tremendous contribution to our work and…
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OEFFA Releases 2023 Farm Bill Tracker
Today, the Ohio Ecological Food and Farm Association (OEFFA) launched its marker bill tracker to encourage action in the months leading up to farm bill authorization. Marker bills aren’t designed to pass as standalone bills, but instead garner support for legislative ideas. They’re often introduced with the goal of being included in a large, omnibus bill like the farm bill. The tracker features 20+ marker bills that have the potential to: The regularly-updated resource features marker bills that OEFFA has officially endorsed, as well as those our members are in favor of.
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It’s Been a Great Ride!
A letter from OEFFA Executive Director Carol Goland In July I shared with the board and staff my intention to leave my position as executive director of OEFFA at the end of this year. I’m now including you in that news, and I’d like to take a moment to say more about my decision and to reflect both on my time with OEFFA and what lies ahead for us both. I’ve long had a suspicion that executive directors have a certain shelf life, and I’ve wanted to be mindful of not staying beyond my expiration date. The average tenure of non-profit executive directors is six years. Staying on through the…
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Agricultural Justice Advocate Onika Abraham to Keynote 40th Annual Ohio Sustainable Food and Farm Conference
Healing a history of oppression in agriculture by honoring the contributions of our ancestors will be the focus of a keynote address by farmer and educator Onika Abraham at the Ohio Ecological Food and Farm Association’s (OEFFA) 40th annual conference, Just Farming: The Path Before Us, this February in Dayton, Ohio. . In her Saturday, February 16 keynote address, “Unearthing Our Roots,” Abraham, Executive Director of Farm School NYC, will explore why it’s as important for farmers to know where their farming comes from as it is for the public to know where their food comes from. Abraham will explore the history of sustainable growing practices, the contributions of black and brown…
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Organic Farmer Elizabeth Henderson to Keynote 40th Ohio Sustainable Food and Farm Conference
The need to connect soil and human health with social justice and fairness on the farm will be the focus of a keynote address by long-time organic farmer, agricultural justice advocate, and writer Elizabeth Henderson at the Ohio Ecological Food and Farm Association’s (OEFFA) 40th annual conference, Just Farming: The Path Before Us, this February in Dayton, Ohio. In her Friday, February 15 keynote address, “Agrarian Justice: Creating a Food System Worth Sustaining,” Henderson will explore why we need to support fair pricing for farmers, instead of subsidizing corporate control of our food system. She’ll also explain why we need to unite family-scale farmers with other food workers and build…
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Reimbursement for Certification Makes Organic an Even Better Deal for Farmers and Processors
For Immediate Release: June 20, 2018 Contact: Carol Goland, OEFFA, (614) 421-2022 Ext. 202, cgoland@oeffa.org ODA Communications, (614) 752-9817, agrcommunications@agri.ohio.gov Columbus, OH—The Ohio Ecological Food and Farm Association (OEFFA) announced that $285,000 is available through the National Organic Certification Cost-Share Program to make organic certification more affordable for organic producers and handlers in Ohio. This funding covers as much as 75 percent of an individual applicant’s certification costs, up to a maximum of $750 annually per certification scope. Four scopes of certification are eligible for reimbursement: crops, wild crops, livestock, and handler. Retail sales of organic products grew to nearly $50 billion in the United States in 2017, an increase…
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Senator Sherrod Brown Honored for Promoting Investments in Local Agriculture
For Immediate Release: February 17, 2018 Contact: Amalie Lipstreu, OEFFA Policy Program Coordinator, (614) 947-1607, amalie@oeffa.org Lauren Ketcham, OEFFA Communications Coordinator, (614) 947-1643, lauren@oeffa.org Dayton, OH—At a gathering of more than 1,100 farmers and local food advocates, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) received the Food and Farm Champion Award from the Ohio Ecological Food and Farm Association (OEFFA). The announcement was made in Dayton on Friday, February 16 as part of OEFFA’s 39th annual conference, A Taste for Change. The award recognizes Senator Brown’s commitment to sustainable agriculture and his leadership in making positive investments in local food systems, community economic development, and public health. . “Senator Brown has consistently…