Position: Secretary

Type of Appointment/Position: Presidential with Senate confirmation    

Ferd Hoefner

Current Rating:

Nominating Speech:
The Sustainable Agriculture Coalition is a nationwide coalition representing grassroots family farm, conservation, and rural interests. Mr. Ferd Hoeftner has been an advocate in Washington for policies that sustain family farms, the land, and the health of those who eat the crops produced, for over 30 years.

He also has probably more experience than anyone else in building policy by grassroots consensus-building among the nation's farmers as SAC has been doing since their inception. SAC also opposes actions to cut and divert the funding promised in the 2002 Farm Bill to farmers and rural America for conservation, research and rural development. It has criticized both branches of government for making these cuts while not taking any action to stop the million dollar production subsidy checks to mega farms at the expense of family farmers, taxpayers and the environment.

The well-thought-out 10-point program for which Mr. Hoefner advocated during the run-up to the most recent Farm Bill may be found at http://www.msawg.org/farmbill/PressRelease-FarmBillPlatform.pdf It includes:
Transform the Conservation Security Program to support comprehensive conservation at high levels of natural resource protection on all types of farms and ranches on a nationwide basis;
Invest in a new Farm, Food, and Rural Transitions Competitive Grants program to provide mandatory farm bill funding for outcome-based research, education and extension on emerging challenges;
Expand the scope and funding of the Value-Added Producers Grant program, including the addition of a new grant component to develop value chains that increase the profitability of mid-sized farms using clear and transparent social, environmental, fair labor and fair trade standards;
Create a Rural Entrepreneurs and Micro-Enterprise Program to provide grants to qualified organizations to assist them in developing training, services, and credit for rural micro-enterprises;
Increase funding for the National Organic Certification Cost Share Program and create a new organic transition support program to increase the conversions that will be necessary to meet burgeoning consumer demand for organic food. And much more.

Remember Progressives had their start in rural areas, and the SAC platform and the way it was arrived at are a model of enlightened democratic empowerment.

Nominated by: Laura Stein

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