Food & Agriculture
We work to rapidly transition our food system to one that is sustainable, healthy, and just. For decades, United States food and farming policy, corporate power and agricultural science have been directed toward a narrow goal: producing as many calories as possible as cheaply as possible. The confluence of these forces has created a powerful river of toxic, energy-intensive factory farming. We are eroding public health, worker safety, local economies, animal welfare, and the resilience of the ecosystems we depend on. Solutions are available — if policymakers, people and businesses make vitally needed changes. We must farm in a way that protects the health of people and the planet. We seek three fundamental shifts in our food system: from toxic and chemical intensive to healthy and ecologically regenerative; from corporate controlled to democratically governed; and from a system that embodies the deepest inequities in our society to one that advances justice and fulfills the needs of all eaters now and in the future.
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Food & Agriculture Tell Congress: Help farmers grow sustainable, healthy foodTAKE ACTION
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Food & Agriculture Tell Amazon and grocery stores to say NO to GMO applesTAKE ACTION
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Food & Agriculture Tell Congress to save the bees!TAKE ACTION
Today, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) released their official rules revising federal regulation of genetically engineered (GE) organisms. Under the new federal rules, USDA has significantly reduced its regulatory responsibility for GE organisms.
Earlier this month, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency approved the release of millions of genetically engineered (GE) mosquitoes in Monroe County, Florida and Harris County, Texas.
A coalition of 68 farmer, environmental, and antitrust groups across the country sent a letter to Treasury Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin today, urging the U.S. Department of the Treasury to ensure that pandemic relief funds do not lead to further consolidation of the food and agriculture industry.
While the federal government prioritizes donations over decades of science, it’s more important than ever for states like New York to step up to protect public health and environment.
Friends of the Earth members successfully pressured unqualified, anti-science USDA nominee Sam Clovis to withdraw from consideration.
Thanks to Friends of the Earth, three-quarters of the garden industry has moved away from neonics, and many major retailers have committed to stop selling plants and products treated with these bee-killing pesticides.
Thanks to pressure from Friends of the Earth and thousands of our members who highlighted the many sustainability and health concerns surrounding genetically engineered salmon and the lack of consumer demand, 80 food retailers have made commitments to not sell GE salmon, including Walmart, Costco, Albertson’s, Kroger, Trader Joe’s and…
As farmers face the new crisis of the pandemic, we must come together to demand that federal stimulus funding and future farm policies support small and mid-scale farmers across the country who are supporting resilient and regenerative local and regional food systems.
Instead of altering the animal, we need to fix the farm. Instead of creating GMO pigs that are resistant to diseases, we should focus on the root cause of the problem: industrial agriculture and horrendous factory farm conditions.
Including pesticide reduction as a vital part of the regenerative agriculture conversation ensures that Monsanto and its ilk do not define the path forward.