Policy & advocacy
As a chapter, we work primarily at the local- and state-level to advocate for policies that address the issues most affecting aspiring, beginning, and young farmers.
Racial equity serves as a foundation for all of our chapter’s policy recommendations. We recognize the effects of structural racism in agriculture, and we work to promote economic advancement across all of our agricultural community.
Overall, we promote policies that foster the health and wellbeing of young farmers, rural and urban agricultural communities, and our shared planet.
Policy Priorities
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Land Access
Access to land is the number one barrier facing young farmers in southeast Tennessee. Land speculation pushes prices to where they are inaccessible for beginning farmers. We support policy that provides young farmers with access to land through transition incentives, tax breaks and other initiatives.
If future farmers do not have access to land, they simply cannot farm. We support creative and collaborative policy that will make land access a reality.
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Local Supply Chains
Young farmers are often unable to access basic infrastructure which enables local and regional agriculture. This includes processing facilities for meat, grains, and vegetables, as well as robust marketing networks.
This chapter hopes to boost supply chain resilience by supporting policy that invests in local and regional agricultural systems. Most explicitly we support increased investment in small, independent meat processors.
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Healthy Soils
The future of agriculture depends on healthy soils and decreased risk of unpredictable weather. Our chapter supports policies that incentivize agricultural practices which build healthy soils and decrease atmospheric CO2.
We also believe that young farmers deserve to be involved in climate policy discussions and should receive compensation when providing ecosystem services.