Ohio Farmers Union

Help Combat Hunger with NFU & Feeding America

September 25, 2012 By Ron Sylvester Leave a Comment

Once again the National Farmers Union is teaming up with Feeding America and the Howard G. Buffett Foundation to help fight hunger in America.

The Howard G. Buffett Foundation has pledged a $50,000 challenge grant to Farmers Union members across the U.S. This means that every dollar we raise, up to $50,000, will be matched by the foundation.

“I am asking all Ohio Farmers Union members to do their part in helping NFU raise these needed funds to help the needy,” said Roger Wise, OFU president.

Just follow the link at the end of this story to donate. Your online donation will be tracked by Feeding America as a Farmers Union contribution and matched by the Buffett Foundation.

All member-driven donations go to food banks that serve hungry people in their communities. Feeding America’s more than 200 member food banks serve 61,000 agencies across the United States that addresses hunger through emergency food assistance and programs.

Through Buffet’s challenge, every dollar donated helps provide $17 worth of food and groceries to Americans in need. With the Buffett Foundation’s matching grant, NFU members will see that number double to $34. If Farmers Union members can reach the goal set of $50,000, it will provide $1.7 million worth of food.

“Ensuring all Americans have a safe, reliable, affordable food supply is something that those of us in agriculture are very concerned about,” said Johnson. “Currently, 37 million Americans are facing hunger, including 14 million children and 3 million seniors. Partnering up with Feeding America gives us an opportunity to lend our part in providing fresh food for families who need it most.”

Please click here to find out how you can help and donate!

Ohio Farmers Union, Dairy Farmers Lose a Friend in Bryan Wolfe

August 11, 2012 By Ron Sylvester Leave a Comment

Former vice president of the Ohio Farmers Union and dairy activist Bryan K. Wolfe of Ashtabula has died in a farming accident at the age of 55.

Roger Wise, OFU president, said earlier this week, “As a grassroots activist, you could not be more committed to your cause than Bryan. He educated the community, OFU, legislators and other farmers for years about the problems in the dairy industry. He focused on the family farmer and small producers and fought for a fair deal for family farmers in a world which too often ignores them. He will be missed.”

Wolfe’s obituary from the Ashtabula Star-Beacon follows:

ROME — Bryan K. Wolfe, age 55, of Rome, Ohio, died Tuesday, August 7, 2012.

He was born March 12, 1957, in Cleveland, Ohio, the son of Fred and Shirley (Heffner) Wolfe. He was married to H. Diana (Young) Wolfe on Sept. 12, 1981.

Bryan was a Dairy Farmer all his life and owned and operated Maple Lane Farms in Rome, Ohio since 1980 with his wife. His passion for farming went well beyond the boundaries of his home farm and was an avid farming activist, who served with many organizations to be a voice for the family farms over his lifetime.

Among his involvement in such organizations include: Vice President of the Ohio Farmers Union for four years. President of the Lake, Geauga and Ashtabula County Farmers Union for 12 years. He was a member of the National Family Farm Coalition for 10 years and served on the Executive Committee, Dairy Sub Committee, and Chaired the Credit Committee.

He also spent 10 years with the Family Farm Defenders. Bryan’s love for dairy farming started with his first 4-H project, which he always said got out of hand. He was a 1975 graduate of Grand Valley High School.

He is survived by his wife, H. Diana Wolfe; his parents, Fred and Shirley Wolfe, of Hartsgrove, Ohio; brother, Kevin D. Wolfe, of Hartsgrove, Ohio; sisters, Laurie A. Wolfe of Hartsgrove, Ohio and Heidi E. Sundberg of Cherry Valley, Ohio; as well as numerous nieces and nephews who loved him and worked with him on the farm over the years.

He was preceded in death by his grandparents, Clarence and Rozella (Day) Wolfe and Thomas and Edna (Bosold) Heffner.

A Funeral Service will be held 11 a.m., Monday, August 13th, at PAINE-GUERRIERO FUNERAL HOME, 140 E. Main St., Orwell, Ohio, with the Rev. Robert Leonard officiating.

Visitation will take place from 3 to 7 p.m., Sunday, August 12th, at the Funeral Home.

In lieu of flowers, please make memorial contributions to the family in care of Diana Wolfe at the funeral home.

More than half of Ohio has had between 50-75% of average rainfall over 90 days

July 31, 2012 By Ron Sylvester Leave a Comment

Another online resource to add to your list of ways to follow information about the drought affecting most of Ohio is Midwest Climate Watch from the Midwestern Regional Climate Center (MRCC).

The MRCC is a cooperative effort of the National Climatic Center and the Illinois State Water Survey. The MRCC serves the nine-state Midwest region: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Ohio, and Wisconsin. They focus on research help to better explain climate and its impacts on the Midwest, provide practical solutions to specific climate problems, and development of climate information for issues such as agriculture, climate change, energy, the environment, human health, risk management, transportation, and water resources.

[Read more…]

As House takes up Farm Bill, Midwest farmers say conservation is key

July 5, 2012 By Ron Sylvester Leave a Comment

Farmers in the U.S. ‘heartland’ value the conservation programs funded under the current Farm Bill and do not want to see cuts in conservation as Congress debates changes to this cornerstone agricultural legislation, says a poll done on behalf of the National Farmers Union and Cultivate Impact.

[Read more…]

Ohio Farmers Union & others urge Senate to add ‘Packer Ban’ to 2012 Farm Bill

June 1, 2012 By Ron Sylvester Leave a Comment

The Ohio Farmers Union and other family farming boosters are urging Congress once again to look out for smaller producers in the nation’s meat production system.

At issue is a proposed amendment to the 2012 Farm Bill, set to move to the floor of the U.S. Senate next week, which would ban meat packers from owning the livestock they process for more than fourteen days. OFU signed on to a letter sent to Senate agricultural staffers and senators laying out the case for the so-called “Packer Ban.”

Sponsored by Food and Water Watch, the letter was signed onto by OFU and 107 other organizations nationwide.

From the letter:

Mega-meatpackers such as Tyson, Cargill, JBS and Smithfield Foods use packer-owned livestock as a major tool for exerting unfair market power over farmers and ranchers. This practice fosters industrial livestock production and freezes independent farmers out of the markets. Packer ownership of livestock has been proven to artificially lower farmgate prices to farmers and ranchers while consumer food prices continue to rise.

By prohibiting direct ownership of livestock by major meatpackers, a ban on packer ownership would reduce the anticompetitive effects of captive supplies, which packers use to manipulate markets, and would help increase market access for America’s independent producers who currently experience significant market-access restrictions due in large part to packer ownership of livestock.

Frack tax proposal one of several items discussed during OFU Legislative Day

March 25, 2012 By Ron Sylvester Leave a Comment

The Ohio Farmers Union made contact with more than a dozen state legislators earlier this week during our 2012 Ohio Legislative Day in Columbus and discussed hot topics like the shale oil and gas boom in eastern Ohio, the Ohio Turnpike, restoration of funding for the Office of the Ohio Consumers Counsel, grain indemnity and Ohio’s renewable energy goals.

[Read more…]

OFU’s Stance on Fracking Tops Policy Highlights for 2012

February 14, 2012 By Ron Sylvester Leave a Comment

COLUMBUS – Members of the Ohio Farmers Union found a common-sense middle ground approach to Ohio’s natural gas boom during their 2012 public policy discussion at their recent convention.

The family farmer and consumer group approved language for this year which supports a limited moratorium on the issuance of permits by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources for new instances of hydraulic fracturing for natural gas in the state. The OFU supported moratorium differs from those supported by some Democrats in the Ohio General Assembly and by some Ohio environmental groups in that it is tied to a preliminary U.S. EPA report due on fracking later this year – rather than the final study results due in 2014.

[Read more…]

Hite Named OFU ‘Legislator of the Year’

February 1, 2012 By Ron Sylvester Leave a Comment

COLUMBUS – State Sen. Cliff Hite, R-Findlay, was honored as the Ohio Farmers Union Legislator of the Year for 2011 at a luncheon this past weekend.

“Cliff Hite and our members don’t always agree on every issue, but he’s been a great friend to family farmers and is a respectful and willing listener when farmers or consumers come before his committee,” said Roger Wise, president of the Ohio Farmers Union.

“Sen. Hite has been responsive on issues like Ohio’s Grain Indemnity Fund – a farmer-financed way to protect our investments and grain at elevators that go bust – and has been available to OFU every single time we’ve asked for his time.”

“Sen. Hite, we believe, means what he says when he told us “Ohio will get it right” on natural gas fracking in the Marcellus and Utica Shales and we believe that issues related to natural gas development which come before his committee will get a fair hearing in a bipartisan spirit,” Wise added.

“Cliff Hite received this award for exemplifying the sort of legislator Ohioans want to see working on Capitol Square – one who is willing to work across the aisle when common sense dictates and one who understands and respects the broad range of opinion among family farmers and consumers.”

Hite was awarded a plaque by the Ohio Farmers Union on Saturday afternoon at the conclusion of OFU’s annual convention in Columbus. Hite is chairman of the Ohio Senate Agriculture, Environment and Natural Resources Committee.

[Video] Introducing MarketMaker – A tool for connecting family farmers to buyers

November 21, 2011 By Ron Sylvester Leave a Comment

MarketMaker

The following video was produced by the Iowa State Extension. Wait, you’re saying – I’m from Ohio! Well, MarketMaker is in use by at least 16 states. It was first developed at the University of Illinois and has made its way into use across the midwest and many eastern states. If you participate in MarketMaker, either as a buyer or a producer (seller) you will be able to focus your attention as locally as you wish. Check out the video. If you like what you see, go register and participate at Ohio MarketMaker.

Check out the Iowa State Extension Youtube page.

OFU & other Ohio-based food & environmental interest groups ask Portman for sound farm, food and environmental policies in Super Committee

November 9, 2011 By Ron Sylvester Leave a Comment

(Columbus, OH)—The Ohio Farmers Union, Association of Second Harvest Food Banks, Ohio Ecological Food and Farm Association, and Ohio Environmental Council are teaming up to urge bold changes to federal agriculture policy.

Their goal is to reform the Federal Farm Bill with a fiscally sound plan to:

Grow America’s agricultural production.
Sustain the basic nutritional needs of the millions of Americans who continue to struggle to put food on the table during the Great Recession.
Nurture America’s emerging sector of organic and sustainable agriculture producers.
Conserve America’s precious soil and water resources.

The U.S. Farm Bill is an outgrowth of the 1930s Dust Bowl and Great Depression. The Farm Bill originally was designed to accomplish three goals:

[Read more…]

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