Now that both the Senate and House have passed their versions of the farm bill, members from both House and Senate Agricultural committees are working as a conference committee to reconcile the differences between the two bills.  The proposed legislative package that the conference committee comes up with will then come to the floors of both the House and Senate for a final vote.  If the package passes, it will then go to President Bush for a signature or a veto.

A key issue that we have been following is funding for the Community Food Projects (CFP) Competitive Grants program. CFP has been funding innovative grassroots efforts (over 240 of them) to promote Community Food Security and local food systems since 1996 to the tune of $5 million per year.  In the Senate version, the CFP program is slated to receive $10 million a year in mandatory funding, which is much better than the House version of $30 million a year but in discretionary funding (which means we would have to fight every year for it to receive any funding). So we want to encourage the conference committee members to go with the Senate version on this issue.

Another issue we have been following is Geographic preference language that would remove restrictions that keep school districts and institutions from using preferences for locally grown food when buying food for their meal programs.  Fortunately, geographic preference language is strong in both the House and Senate bills going into the conference committee process.

We have also been following efforts to strengthen the Nutrition Title of the Farm bill that includes positive efforts to expand and reform Food Stamps and other nutrition programs.  The following four paragraphs come from a January 2, 2008 action alert from FRAC (Food Research and Action Center):

Procedural Outlook:  Leaders of the House and Senate Agriculture Committees reportedly met in late December to establish a framework and timetable for ironing out differences between the House and Senate versions of the Farm Bill that passed in July and December, respectively.  Although conferees have not yet been formally appointed, informal negotiations are expected to proceed, with leaders aiming to complete conference negotiations by February 1st.  See “Federal farm bill passes in Senate,” by Erik Posz, Redwood Gazette, 12/27/07.

House and Senate leaders also are expected to play significant roles in decisions about the financing and priorities in the Farm Bill package.  And members of Congress who are not on the Conference Committee also still can influence the direction of the package and should be asked to weigh in on behalf of nutrition title priorities with their leaders and Conference Committee Members. 

What’s at Stake:  The Senate version of the Farm Bill that passed in December and the one that passed the House in July each contain important new investments in the Food Stamp Program and TEFAP.  These include, among other changes:  increasing and then indexing both the Food Stamp Program $10 minimum monthly benefit and the standard deductions for households of three or fewer; lifting the cap on the child care deduction; raising food stamp household asset limits and then indexing them; and boosting TEFAP commodities purchases.   For details of the House and Senate versions of the Farm Bill, go to agriculture.house.gov and agriculture.senate.gov, respectively (Senate version to be posted). 

The House-passed Farm Bill is preferable with regard to the duration of Food Stamp Program and The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) improvements—there are permanent law changes under the House bill, but only five-year changes that would theoretically sunset under the Senate version unless renewed (and paid for) at the end of the five years. The House provisions on the $10 minimum monthly benefit, standard deduction and TEFAP also are preferable to the Senate bill:  the minimum benefit boost would take effect earlier (FY 2008 rather than FY 2009); the standard deduction raise would be more significant ($145 rather than $140); and the TEFAP commodity purchases increase would be indexed for inflation. Improvements to food stamp asset rules, however, are more significant under the Senate bill (with asset limits increased from $2,000 to $3,500, and $3,000 to $4,500, before indexing). Advocacy to secure the best provisions on each key point from each bill and to finance these investments for ten years  is critically important for the potential gains to be realized for hungry families.
Finally, there were many other efforts we (the Community Food Bank) did not follow as closely that were aimed and larger reforms of the Farm bill that did not do so well:

Dorgan and Grassley’s amendment to limit commodity payments and redirect funds to nutrition, rural development and conservation failed. Its main opponents were southern senators. Due to a procedural technicality that required the amendment to pass with 60, not 50, votes, it didn’t pass with 56 votes. Ugh.
Klobuchar’s amendment to limit commodity payments to those with an adjusted gross income under $750,000 failed
Tester’s amendment against unfair livestock competition failed
Brown’s amendment to cut crop insurance subsidies failed
Lugar and Lautenberg’s amendment to phase out commodities altogether and strengthen other areas, including the nutrition title, failed.

Farm Bill Timing

*Congress has scheduled votes for the two weeks of Jan. 11th and the 18th, so the farm bill conference committee could meet during those weeks, after having worked casually on the farm bill over their break. Chairman Harkin has said he hopes to finish conference by the end of January.

*Veto threats have been issued by the Bush administration against both the House and Senate Farm bills. It’s not clear whether this threat is only intended to pressure the conference committee.

Message:  Even though, as far as we know, no Congressional members from Arizona will be part of the conference committee, you are still encouraged to contact your Senators and Representative to urge them to weigh in on the process.  You can encourage them to voice support for mandatory funding of $10 million a year for the Community Food Projects Competitive Grants program, and big increases in Food Stamp program benefits (including the minimum monthly benefit and the standard deduction).

If you have any questions, please contact Kitty Ufford-Chase at the Food Bank.  She can be reached by phone at 622-0525, x251, or email: kitty@communityfoodbank.org.

The Community Food Bank’s Tuesday Farmers’ Market is promoting healthy eating by offering half off on purchases of fruits and vegetables, up to $10.00, when customers use Food Stamps.

The “healthy eating half off purchases” will be offered at the Tuesday Farmers’ Market at 3003 S. Country Club Road beginning January 8 through February 12, 2008.  The Farmers’ Market is open from 8:00 am until Noon.

A recent study published in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association reports that healthy foods cost more than unhealthy ones.  The results indicated that unhealthy, high calorie foods cost about $1.76 per 1,000 calories and that healthy, low calorie foods cost about $18.00 per 1,000 calories. A daily diet of 2,000 calories of healthy foods which includes fresh fruits and vegetables, lean meats, and whole grains costs nearly ten times more than a diet of unhealthy food. The study’s author added, “The high cost of nutritious foods indicates the need to address the economic barriers to healthy living.”

The healthy foods promotion will provide a six week introduction to Food Stamp users to the Farmers’ Market where they can purchase locally grown fruits and vegetables, learn about gardening classes, visit the Nuestra Tierra Food Bank garden, and enjoy fresh food recipes and preparation demonstrations.

For more information, contact Kelly Watters at (520) 622-0525 x 242 or kwatters@communityfoodbank.com.

12 local businesses will unite to fight hunger on December 21, 2007.  DeWalt, Home Depot, Harley Davidson, 2 Men and a Truck, Tucson Unified School District, Habitat for Humanity, Citadel Radio Broadcasting, Western Warehouse, Texas Roadhouse, JobSite, Alliance for Construction Trades and the Community Food Bank will collect food at their respective locations from now until December 21, 2007. Watch for the food donation containers at these locations. 

On December 21st, all of the food collected will be moved to the Home Depot store at 7677 E. Broadway Blvd. (Broadway and Pantano) for a DeWalt event from 9:00 AM to 2:00 PM.  Donations of canned food at the DeWalt event that day will be rewarded as follows…

 5 Cans = Free DeWalt Koozie
 20 Cans = Free DeWalt Hat
 20 Cans, Plus = Free DeWalt T-shirt
Plus many more giveaways from all participating businesses.

If you forget your canned food, monetary donations will be accepted.  The Community Food Bank needs donations now more than ever during this holiday season.

For information on this event, contact Adriel Noriega, DeWalt representative at (520) 940-7887 or adriel.noriega@bdk.com.

Anthony Bruno, the Community Food Bank’s Government Resources Manager, has been awarded the Parent Aid 2007 “Teddy Award” for Community Leadership. He received the award at a November 2, 2007 ceremony at the Arizona Inn.

Mr. Bruno was recognized for his contributions to Tucson and the surrounding communities in the area of child welfare.  He served on the Sahuarita School Board for eight years and founded a mobile 4H-Club to reach kids in rural areas.  .

Through his work with the Community Food Bank, Mr. Bruno has been instrumental in starting a summer meals program and negotiating with the Tohono O’Odham nation to expand the Child Nutrition Initiative to their community.  He has also been involved with Arizona Youth Soccer and Therapeutic Riding of Tucson.  Mr. Bruno was nominated by the Arizona Rural Human Services Network and the Community Food Bank

The mission of Parent Aid is to strengthen families and prevent child abuse. The Teddy Awards were started by Parent Aid more than a decade ago to recognize outstanding community leaders for their work to better the lives of children and families. 

The Community Food Bank will dedicate its Camino de Esperanza (the Walk of Hope) on Saturday, December 8, 2007 at 2:00 PM. 

Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords will speak following the dedication about the increasing demand for Community Food Bank services, and will urge Southern Arizonans to help meet this growing need during the holiday season.  Mrs. Raul Grijalva will be in attendance representing her husband Congressman Grijalva and will speak on his behalf at the dedication. 

Congresswoman Giffords and Mrs. Grijalva will be available for questions and interviews following their remarks.

The press conference will take place at the Community Food Bank. The public is invited to hear Congresswoman Giffords and Mrs. Grijalva’s remarks.

For more information, contact Jack Parris at (520) 622-0525 x 215

The December 18th Sons of Orpheus Holiday Concert will benefit the Community Food Bank once again this year.  The concert will be held at 7 pm at the Berger Performing Arts Center on the campus of the Arizona School for the Deaf and Blind. This is the 10th Annual Holiday Concert put on by the Sons of Orpheus to benefit the Community Food Bank.

“We are thrilled that guitarist, Ismael Barajas has agreed to be a special guest performer, as he already contributes greatly to the Community Food Bank via his musical talents. ASDB Students will perform in the concert as well as Frank Hernandez, ASDB Board Member and talented musician. ”
- Mia Handen, Vice President/ Board Member, Sons of Orpheus

The concert is free with a donation of non-perishable food or cash donation to the Community Food Bank.

 The 2007 Punch Woods Endowment Grants for Community Food Security have been announced by the Community Food Bank.  This year’s award winners are:

1.  “Food from the Ground Up.” Funding to coordinate two events; a dinner and talk by Brother David Andrews to educate the Tucson area community on food issues. The second event is a day-long conversation with Brother Andrews and Reverend Doug Bland on food issues – a grant of $1,095.
2. “Market on the Move.” Funding to move the Santa Cruz River Farmers’ Market to a more visible and accessible location on the Westside of Tucson – a grant of $4,000.
3. “Iskash*taa Food Processing Project.”  Funding to harvest and process approximately 30,000 pounds of fruits and vegetables as an economic development initiative for refugees in Tucson – a grant of $2,000.
4. “Small Potatoes Gleaning Project/CZC.” Funding will support development of a community garden that will provide organic, fresh produce for a food insecure neighborhood in Ferndale, Washington – a grant of $1,000.

 The Punch Woods Endowment for Community Food Security, established in 2002, is dedicated and limited to supporting community food security programs.  Community Food Security (CFS) is when people obtain a nutritionally adequate, culturally acceptable diet through local non-emergency sources.  Community food security programs build strong, sustainable, local food systems that ensure access to affordable, nutritious and culturally appropriate food to all people at all times.

“Needless to say, I am very pleased that the Endowment is able to make these small grants that will help several projects both within and outside the Community Food Bank make small steps toward community food security,” said Mr. Woods. “They are small, but first steps toward creating a community that is food secure for all. This is our dream and our hope.”
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  Charles “Punch” Woods served as President/CEO of the Community Food Bank for 25 years and retired in March of 2002.

For additional information on this release, contact Varga Garland at (520) 622-0525
x 220 or  vgarland@communityfoodbank.org.

To print please click on the form you wish to download:

Pantry Client Information Form (.PDF)

Pantry Client Information Form- Spanish (.PDF)

Signature Sheet (.PDF)

Since 2004 Tucson’s Valley Animal Hospital has been collecting food donations for the Community Food Bank. Arranged by Ericka Hughes, the drive this year culminated in over 6,000 pounds of donated food.

Ericka says the yearly drive is a “good way to help employees with morale while helping the community.” The employees have split into 4 teams each designing their own posters and racing to collect the most food. The winning team gets to dress up the doctors in funny costumes at a party to finish off the successful drive.

Jacob Coldsmith, the Community Food Bank’s Food Drive Coordinator has this to say; “It really is amazing that Valley can collect so much food in such a short time.  I always enjoy working with Valley and seeing the enthusiasm that pushes all the employees to keep collecting literally tons of food year after year!!  Valley is a wonderful asset to the community we serve. ”

The Community Food Bank wishes to thank Valley Animal Hospital for the hard work they have been doing since 2004.

For More information or to start your own food drive please contact Jacob Coldsmith at 622-0525 Ext. 260 or email jcoldsmith@communityfoodbank.com

The 2007 Farm Bill has passed a major hurdle on its way to approval by Congress. The House of Representatives passed its version of the 2007 Farm Bill (H.R. 2419) by a vote of 231 to 191 on July 27, 2007.

The Farm Bill comes up for renewal every five years. The present Bill was approved in 2002 and expires on September 30, 2007.

The Farm Bill is about much more than farms. It’s about the food we eat, the clothes we wear, and even the fuel we use. The House version makes new investments in fruit and vegetable production, conservation, nutrition and renewable energy. For these reasons, some have suggested that the legislation should be renamed the “Food and Farm Bill.”

Nearly half the money appropriated in the farm bills since the 1960s has been for programs that help the Community Food Bank run as effectively as it does. The 2007 Farm Bill provides more money for nutrition programs like WIC, Food Stamps and Emergency Food Boxes. It also provides more money to senior nutrition programs, like Food Plus. New legislation introduced with the 2007 Farm Bill will allow Food Plus recipients additional food assistance in the form of vouchers to purchase fruits and vegetables from farmers’ markets.

The next step for the 2007 Farm Bill is deliberations in the Senate. The Senate Agriculture Committee released its draft of the Farm Bill after Labor Day.

To learn more about the Farm Bill visit “Follow the Food and Farm Bill.” You can find information on changes to the bill that the Community Food Bank supports, as well as letters and contact information for your members of Congress