REPORT
OF THE USDA NATIONAL COMMISON ON SMALL FARMS
In
July of 1997 Secretary of Agriculture Dan Glickman appointed
a 30 member National Commission on Small Farms to examine the
status of small farms in America and to determine a course of
action for USDA to recognize, respect, and respond to their
needs. The Commission's report was issued in January of 1998.
With the appointment of the Commission, Glickman stated:
We
cannot let America's small farm heritage, the foundation of
our rural communities, just slip through our fingers. We must
carefully look at the barriers facing small farms and seek solutions
to these problems. This is the charge I have given to the men
and women who will serve on this commission.
The
commission outlined eight policy goals for a national strategy
for small farms, and within each strategy, made a number of
specific recommendations to USDA.
- Recognize
the importance and cultivate the strengths of small farms.
- Create
a framework of support and responsibility for small farms.
- Promote,
develop, and enforce fair, competitive, and open markets
for small farms.
- Conduct
appropriate outreach through partnerships to serve small
farm and ranch operators.
- Establish
future generations of farmers.
- Emphasize
sustainable agriculture as a profitable, ecological, and
socially sound strategy for small farms.
- Dedicate
budget resources to strengthen the competitive position
of small farms.
- Provide
just and humane working conditions for all people engaged
in production agriculture.
The
Commission stated that:
Small
farms contribute more than farm production to our society. Small
farms embody a diversity of ownership, cropping systems, landscapes,
biological organization, culture, and traditions. Since the
majority of farmland is managed by a large number of small farm
operators, the responsible management of soil, water, and wildlife
encompassed by these farms produces significant environmental
benefits. Decentralized land ownership produces more equitable
economic opportunity for people in rural communities, and offers
self-employment and business management opportunities. Farms,
particularly family farms, can be nurturing places for children
to grow up and acquire the values of responsibility and hard
work....The dominant belief in agriculture is that large farms
are more efficient than small farms. However, Professor Willis
L. Peterson from the University of Minnesota found that factors
other than size influence the unit costs in agriculture. Peterson
asserts that "small family and part-time farms are at least
as efficient as larger commercial operations. In fact, there
is evidence of diseconomies of scale as farm size increases."
Concepts
described in this report were provided by Jaclyn Reid, Member
of USDA's National Commission on Small Farms, during a seminar
held in Spokane on January 11, 1999. Prepared by Tom Platt,
WSU Cooperative Extension.
Agricultural
Sustainability. Highlights from a seminar series conducted by
Washington State University's Ag Horizons Team and funded by
USDA Western Region SARE.
Thomas
E. Platt
MSPO Box 399 (mailing)
303 6th Street (street)
Davenport, WA 99122-0399
Phone: (509) 725-4171
FAX: (509) 725-4104
plattom@wsu.edu
