The Farm Report: Live!

In collaboration with HRN and the National Young Farmers Coalition, Following a screening of the documentary "Common Ground" Leigh Ollman moderates a spirited conversation about the future of farming with guests Michelle A.T Hughes, Chirs Nickell and Leah Penniman.

Chris Nickell (Finca Seremos)- Chris Nickell (they/them) is a community organizer and land steward. With previous work experience in academia, labor organizing, and state government, Chris turned to agriculture in 2022. They farmed vegetables and offered public programming at Stone Barns Center in 2022 and served as crew leader at Cropsey Community Farm in 2023. This year they founded Finca Seremos in Beacon, NY with their spouse, Brenda González. Seremos is a food justice project to grow fresh, organic, nutrient-dense produce for Chris and Brenda's community in Northern Manhattan and the Bronx as well as their new community in the mid-Hudson Valley.

Leah Penniman (Soul Fire Farm)- Leah Penniman (all pronouns) is a Black Kreyol farmer, mother, soil nerd, author, and food justice activist from Soul Fire Farm in Grafton, NY. She co-founded Soul Fire Farm in 2010 with the mission to end racism in the food system and reclaim our ancestral connection to land. As Co-ED and Farm Director, Leah is part of a team that facilitates powerful food sovereignty programs – including farmer training for Black & Brown people, a subsidized farm food distribution program for communities living under food apartheid, and domestic and international organizing toward equity in the food system.

Michelle A.T. Hughes (Young Farmers) - Michelle (she/her) is a former hog farmer from New Haven, Connecticut, with a background in agriculture policy. Before serving as Co-Executive Director, Michelle has served in a number of roles at the Coalition beginning as a Farm Bill Organizer in the summer of 2017. From there, Michelle served on the federal policy team as Federal Policy Associate after the passing of the 2018 Farm Bill. Working on federal farm policy reinforced Michelle’s desire for equitable change for young farmers and inspired her to design a framework for the organization’s racial equity transformation.

SUPPORT A BRIGHTERFUTURE FOR U.S.AGRICULTURE.Help our coalition tackle the obstacles preventing talented, passionate young farmers and ranchers from building successful careers in agriculture.

Access to land is the number one challenge facing the next generation of farmers in the US. Centuries of discrimination and land theft have put this resource out of reach of farmers who are Black, Indigenous, and People of Color. Everyday in the US we lose 2,000 acres of viable farmland to development. With millions of acres on the verge of changing hands, the Farm Bill is our best chance to ensure this land transitions equitably to the next generation of farmers. We’ll dig into the land access challenges farmers face, how the One Million Acres for the Future campaign provides solutions, and the role the next farm bill can play. Visit https://www.youngfarmers.org/land/ to find out more.

Learn more about the Young Farmers One Million Acres campaign, check out the National Young Farmer Survey, and tell Congress to support land access for young and BIPOC farmers here.

Our guests specifically talk about the the Increasing Land, Capital, and Market Access Program (LCM) and the Increasing Land Access, Security, and Opportunities (LASO) programs.

Connect with the farmers featured in this episode. Visit Heru Urban Farming and EarthDance Farm School.

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Despite an increasing number of farmers growing food in cities urban agriculture wasn’t acknowledged in the farm bill until 2018. Lisa Held, journalist with Civil Eats and former Farm Report host provides the scoop on how the Farm Bill will impact the future of urban ag.

Melissa Metrick and Wythe Marschall, co-hosts of HRN’s Fields podcast, give us some perspective on urban land-access challenges and what’s happening on the ground in cities across the country. And, our very own co-host Alita Kelly shares some of the urban agriculture projects she’s been working on in her community.

Check out Fields here.

For more information on the Office of Urban Agriculture and Innovation, visit the USDA website.

Learn more about the NYU Urban Farm Lab and the Map N.Y.C. projects that Wythe and Melissa mentioned.

Visit Civil Eats to catch the latest food system stories.

The Farm Report is hosted by Leigh Ollman and Alita Kelly, produced by Leigh Ollman, Evan Flom and H Conley, and edited by Hannah Beal and H Conley.

Audio engineering is by Armen Spendjian and H Conley. Music is by Breakmaster Cylinder and Jangwa

Learn more about the National Young Farmers Coalition here and consider becoming a member. Click here to take action on the farm bill and other important policy issues.

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