Our agricultural system is so intertwined with the economic system that is causing the climate crisis that any Green New Deal will need to address how we produce and consume what we eat. That will require actions from combatting corporate consolidation to ensuring fair prices for farmers to supporting growers to transition to sustainable farming practices.
Like millions of farmworkers who have labored in America’s fields and orchards, I know what it’s like to grow the food we eat using toxic pesticides.
Our current industrial food system, and the policies that prop it up, are a central part of the climate crisis, and transforming them must be a central part of the Green New Deal solution.
This research confirms what is intuitive and supports what the President's Cancer Panel told us nearly a decade ago: reducing exposure to cancer-causing chemicals, including pesticides, reduces your risk of cancer.
When it comes to taking action on climate change, transitioning to renewable energy and kicking our fossil fuel addiction typically get the most attention. But the food we eat and how we grow it is just as central. Data show that many agricultural practices, including organic farming, can have a significant impact in the fight to protect people and the planet.
America’s eaters and farmers deserve a Farm Bill that addresses our many food-related environmental crises, from climate change to soil erosion and pollinator decline.
Based on a recent poll, 91.7 percent of farmers surveyed are concerned that Bayer-Monsanto will control data about farm practices.