Part 1. Section 2: HOW DOES THE 2008 FARM BILL IMPACT VERMONT?

PART I. THE GLOBALIZATION OF FOOD AND FARMING

 

2.  HOW DOES THE 2008 FARM BILL IMPACT VERMONT?

 

The Farm Bill OF 2008 will boost aid to dairy, organic and specialty crop farmers, help pay for the clean up of Lake Champlain, provide more funds for farmland preservation and support renewable energy projects. 

 

The bill will help 60,000 low-income Vermonters who need to turn to the Vermont Foodbank and their network partners of food pantries and food shelves. This translates into greater food security at a time when rising food prices and fuel prices, stagnant wages and a faltering economy are hitting these families the hardest. 

 

In March 2008, more than 53,000 Vermonters enrolled in food stamps -- a 15-year high. Overall, more than $15 million in new food stamp investments will be made Vermont over the next 5 years. The farm bill also provides $2 million in new and increased support for food banks, food shelves and pantries -- after a five year decline in food donations. More than 770,000 additional meals will be provided to low-income Vermonters through the increase. The bill also encourages the purchase of locally-grown produce from small farmers to food shelves and increases the access to farmers' markets for low-income Vermonters.  

 

Specific monies will be spent on:

. providing $22 million to help farmers pay for the cost of becoming certified organic under the National Organic Program;

. offering $446 million in block grants to maple syrup producers, Christmas tree growers and other specialty crop farmers to help pay for production, marketing and development costs;

. boosting Lake Champlain clean-up efforts by increasing funds to help farmers prevent phosphorous pollution from running off their land into the lake and its tributaries; 

. helping to fight sprawl by increasing the Farmland Protection Program by more than $700 million. The program provides federal matching funds to states and local governments to buy development rights to help current farmers stay on the land and provide opportunities for new farmers to purchase farms; 

. providing matching funds for the Community Forest and Open Space Conservation Program, which helps towns purchase forested space. Technical assistance in forest management will be available. The Community Wood Energy Program would provide matching funds for communities to shift heating and power for municipal buildings from fossil fuels to woodchip and biomass systems.     

Part 1. Section 2: How Does the 2008 Farm Bill Impact Vermont?