Congressman, area organic farmers push for strong legislation

April 19, 2007

By John Tredrea, Staff Writer

U.S. Congressman Rush Holt joined other officials and the managers of the local Honey Brook Organic Farm on April 11 to push for federal legislation that addresses what they say are key agricultural needs in this part of the country.
At a press conference at the Honey Brook Farm, Rep. Holt called on Congress to enact a 2007 Farm Bill that significantly increases funding for conservation programs, healthy food initiatives and marketing opportunities for New Jersey farmers.

"The funding for conservation programs is in the form of grants that help to cost share for transition to organic production, implement water efficient irrigation, preserve wetlands and farmland permanently, etc. These are not subsidies or loans," said Amy Hansen of New Jersey Conservation Foundation.
"The healthy food initiatives would provide funds for free vegetables and fruits to 100 schools in each of the 50 states, for schoolchildren. This helps farmers by giving them an additional market," Ms. Hansen added.

"The agricultural community in the Northeast has unique needs," said Rep. Holt, a longtime Hopewell Township resident. "We must ensure that the 2007 Farm Bill addresses priorities for New Jersey like open space preservation, farmland protection and facilitating the production of nutritious produce and the raw materials that can lead to alternative energy."

Honey Brook Farm is off Wargo Road in east-central section of Hopewell Township. Rep. Holt noted that Honey Brook Farm is the largest community-supported agriculture farm in the nation. In 15 years, Honey Brook has gone from providing food to 50 families in the Hopewell Valley area to 3,000 families across the state. The farm is part of the Stony Brook-Millstone Watershed Association's 500-plus acre preserve.

The New Jersey Conservation Foundation (NJCF) supports the legislation called for by Rep. Holt, who is a co-sponsor of HR 1551, the Healthy Farms, Foods, and Fuels Act of 2007. HR 1551 has been introduced in the House of Representatives. On March 15, "it was referred to the Committee on Agriculture, and in addition to the committees on Education and Labor, and Armed Services," said Ms. Hansen.
Also on March 15, Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) "introduced S 919, identical legislation and Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) signed on as a cosponsor," Ms. Hansen added.

"Our members of Congress are showing strong leadership through support of this important bill," said Michele S. Byers, NJCF executive director. "As an original co-sponsor of the Healthy Farms Act, Congressman Holt clearly understands the importance of agriculture to our state. He is a champion of organic agriculture, and recently submitted a program request for $5 million for transition to organic production and $1.5 million for organic certification cost share assistance. NJCF wants to preserve farmland and we want to keep farmers farming because sustainable agriculture is vital to New Jersey's future."

"At Honey Brook Organic Farm, we have a strong commitment to conservation of natural resources. Passage of initiatives like those in the Healthy Farms bill would provide critical assistance to farm managers like us so we may continue to provide sound stewardship of farmland under our care," added Sherry Dudas, who works at Honey Brook.

The proposed Healthy Farms, Foods and Fuels Act to which Ms. Dudas refers would be an addition to the federal Farm Bill that is scheduled for re-adoption by Congress this year.

"This new legislation will go a long way toward helping us keep the garden in the Garden State while helping protect clean water and the environment," said Jim Waltman, executive director of the Stony Brook-Millstone Watershed Association.
"The bill would increase funding to address many of our greatest environmental challenges-from sprawl to degraded water quality, and help expand organic farming throughout the country, a direction that will improve American's health," Mr. Waltman concluded.

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