A USDA Office for Small Acreage
With your Southeast Regional Ag News, I am Haylie Shipp. This is the Ag Information Network.
New legislation introduced this week would increase support for farmers, ranchers, and foresters with small-acreage operations across the country.
That legislation is the Office of Small Farms Establishment Act and it would create a new office within USDA. The office would ensure that small-acreage operations have equitable access to the critical federal programs that provide farm loans, conservation funding, and crop insurance.
New Jersey Democrat Cory Booker introduced the bill in the Senate, and Democrat Representatives Marilyn Strickland of Washington, Alma Adams of North Carolina and Jim McGovern of Massachusetts introduced the bill in the House.
The term “small farm” was a bit too vague for me, so I had to take a look at the legislation for some more information. Small acreage farms are officially those farms with fewer than 180 acres and they make up 70 percent of all farms in the US. Although they only cover eight percent of agricultural land, they are responsible for 20 percent of all agricultural sales.
