Jan 2024 Food Committee Update

Below is a reflection of our accomplishments from this past year and opportunities for 2024. Given the recent bipartisan extension of the 2023 Farm Bill, there will be more to come/explore this year in the food/ag realm. I'll be crafting a new monthly calendar invite and will share when available. Look forward to working together in 2024!

- Jennifer Ho, Food Committee Co-Chair, LA Chapter of The Climate Reality Project

2023 KEY PROJECTS

  • Letter Sign-ons

    • Signed on to a support letter requesting that $25.8M funding be restored to the proposed state budget for three small and underserved farmer infrastructure programs: AB 1009, Bloom's food hub bill, Urban Agriculture program (California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA), CDFA's Beginning Farmer & Farmworker Training Program.

    • Joined the effort to support bond bill AB 408, which proposes funding infrastructure projects that improve regional food processing and markets, expand farmworker health and safety, improve access to healthy food, and advance sustainable agriculture in California. In September, we found out that AB 408 officially became a 2-year bill, securing funding for transformative and equitable food & farm investments in a climate bond!

    • Signed on to a support letter to authorize the Secretary of Agriculture to defer payments on all Farm Service Agency (FSA) direct loans for investing in soil health management systems. 

  • Regenerate America

  • Public Comments

    • Submitted public comment to USDA to support changes to make it easier for schools to source food from local producers and encourage scratch cooking.

  • Other

    • Created a video as part of marketing team’s effort to create diverse, engaging content for social media.

OPPORTUNITIES FOR 2024

  • Continue to build upon 2023 initiatives

    • Regenerate America coalition advocacy efforts continue with the recent bipartisan extension of the 2023 Farm Bill

  • Continue to build strategic partnerships + amplify efforts of aligned organizations, coalitions, and initiatives

  • Explore additional opportunities depending on committee members' interest & bandwidth

LEADERSHIP UPDATE

  • Lisa Lines is stepping down as Co-Chair for the Food Committee. As such, we are seeking new committee members to help shape our projects and priorities for this year. If you're interested in advocating for sustainable and regenerative food and agricultural solutions in our local food shed and beyond, we'd love to hear from you!

CRP LA