Chellie Pingree: Failures + Opportunities of US Agricultural Policies

#051: Organic farmer and Maine congresswoman Chellie Pingree shares her insights as  the Chair of the Subcommittee on Agriculture about what she calls "a dereliction of duty" by the USDA in its regulation of the National Organic Program. She also discusses the cancellation of organic dairy farming contracts by Horizon/ Danone, the inaction of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack on a number of issues, the powerful lobbies that work to influence our food systems' regulations, and a handful of important solutions to problems plaguing small family farmers, such as the need for regional processing plants and improved infrastructure.

Chellie Pingree moved to Maine and became an organic farmer after reading Helen and Scott Nearing's book "The Good Life." In 1992 she was elected to the Maine State Senate and has served in the US House of Representatives since 2008. She currently sits on the powerful House Appropriations Committee, chairing the Subcommittee on Interior and the Environment, the Subcommittee on Agriculture, and Subcommittee on Military Construction and Veterans Affairs. She also sits on the House Agriculture Committee.   

To watch a video version of this podcast with access to the full transcript and links relevant to our conversation, please visit:

https://www.realorganicproject.org/congresswoman-chellie-pingree-us-agriculture-failures-opportunities-episode-fifty-one


The Real Organic Podcast is hosted by Dave Chapman and Linley Dixon, engineered by Brandon StCyr, and edited and produced by Jenny Prince.

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The Real Organic Project is a farmer-led movement working towards certifying 1,000 farms across the United States this year. Our add-on food label distinguishes soil-grown fruits and vegetables from hydroponically-raised produce, and pasture-raised meat, milk, and eggs from products harvested from animals in horrific confinement (CAFOs - confined animal feeding operations).

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We believe that the organic standards, with their focus on soil health, biodiversity, and animal welfare were written as they should be, but that the current lack of enforcement of those standards is jeopardizing the ability for small farms who adhere to the law to stay in business. The lack of enforcement is also jeopardizing the overall health of the customers who support the organic movement; customers who are not getting what they pay for at market but still paying a premium price. And the lack of enforcement is jeopardizing the very cycles (water, air, nutrients) that Earth relies upon to provide us all with a place to live, by pushing extractive, chemical agriculture to the forefront.

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