If we want food, we need farms - right?
Of course. That's why it's a problem that Connecticut has let its farms become endangered. Join CTLCV, American Farmland Trust (AFT), farmers,
growers, chefs and consumers for a rally at the State Capitol on March 18 to Speak Up For Agriculture! |
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What: RALLY & PRESS CONFERENCE to Speak Up for Agriculture. The focus is on the proposed cuts to farmland protection funding; a repeal of tax
exemptions for farming; cuts to farm business grants;
and the economic
 hardship of local dairy farmers. - When: Wednesday, March 18, 2009. Rally 9-10 am;
Press Conference at 10:30 am. - Where: Rally at the State Capitol Steps, 210 Capitol Avenue, Hartford. Look for the No Farms, No Food Banner! Press Conference next door in Room 2A of the Legislative Office Building.
- Why: Because food comes from farms. Without farms, there's no food.
- Who: Rally with Farmers, Growers, Consumers & Chefs and these great organizations: American Farmland Trust, Canaan Valley Agriculture Coop, CitySeed,
Connecticut Farm Bureau, Connecticut Farmland Trust, Northeast Organic
Farming Association of Connecticut, Very Alive and Working Lands
Alliance.
For more information please contact Jiff Martin, New England Field Representative at
jmartin@farmland.org, 860-683-4230 (office) or 860-296-1380 (cell).
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Want to know more? Here's some additional background.
Join American Farmland Trust (AFT), farmers, growers, chefs and consumers for a
rally at the State Capitol on March 18 to 'Speak Up For Agriculture,' followed
by an open press conference on the importance of state funding through the
Community Investment Account (CIA).
Governor Rell and the state legislature
have proposed cuts to the CIA, a small but important source of funding for
agricultural and other programs throughout the state.
The rally and press conference will focus on the proposed cuts to farmland protection funding; a repeal of tax
exemptions on seeds and farm equipment; the elimination farm business grants;
and the current economic plight of local dairy farmers.
Established in 2005, the CIA, is a nationally recognized
program that dedicates most of a $30 deed recording fee toward state programs for land protection, farm
viability, historic preservation and affordable housing.
Four dollars of each
fee remain with the town and the remainder is used for these four priorities.
"Public willingness to accept this fee was based on the promise that the money
would be permanently used for these purposes," says Jiff Martin, New England
Field Representative for AFT.
"Although the account has shrunk to a projected $14 million
in today's real estate market, it provides the only source of funding for
planning grants to restore mills and historic properties, technical assistance
to towns to develop affordable housing, pre-development loans for nonprofit
developers of affordable housing, agriculture business promotion, municipal
planning grants for land preservation, and rehabilitation of urban greens and
community gardens," adds Martin. "And, in many cases, the funds leverage
federal and private funds toward the same priorities."
In the state Department of Agriculture, the Community
Investment Account pays for a mix of farmland preservation and farm business
programs. Lebanon, Guilford, Milford and Thompson have tapped grants to help
plan for farmland preservation. Litchfield, Branford, Waterbury, Stonington and Coventry have used the grants to
help promote farmers markets and grow their local agriculture industry.
The Community Investment Account has also paid for the purchase of development
rights on eight farms, comprising 1,022 acres. "Farmers and farmland preservation
supporters agree the availability of CIA funds has given new credibility to our
state's farmland preservation program by adding much-needed staff and
expediting the agency's ability to obtain certified appraisals and land
surveys," says Martin.
AFT and its Working Lands
Alliance coalition is co-sponsoring the rally along with CitySeed,
Connecticut Farm Bureau, Northeast Organic Farming Association of Connecticut,
Very Alive, Canaan Valley Agriculture Coop, and Connecticut Farmland Trust.
Those
joining the rally should look for the group at 9 a.m. under the 'No Farms, No
Food'© banner on the Capitol steps, located at 210 Capitol Avenue in Hartford,
CT 06106. The open press conference will immediately follow at 10:30 a.m. in
Hearing Room 2A.
Citizens are also invited to join small grassroots teams
from their county that will conduct meetings with legislators during
pre-scheduled appointments between 11:00 a.m. and 12:30 p.m., but should RSVP
American Farmland Trust to participate at jmartin@farmland.org
or by calling 860-683-4230.
American Farmland Trust is a national nonprofit organization
working with communities and individuals to protect the land, plan for
agriculture and keep the land healthy. As the leading advocate for farm and
ranch land conservation, AFT has ensured that more than a million acres stays bountiful and productive. AFT's national office is located in Washington,
DC. For more information,
visit www.farmland.org.
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