Capital Press coverage from March 18, 2013 of FoFF’s rally at the State Capitol. Over 150 family farmers and their supporters attended the event. From the article:
The members of Friends of Family Farmers visited lawmakers, set up a mini-farmers’ market in the Capitol Galleria and held a rally on the Capitol steps.
Among speakers at the rally, Rep. Brian Clem, D-Salem, congratulated the group on its rapid growth.
“To see the growth of this organization has been astonishing,” Clem said. “When I started, in 2007, there wasn’t a voice for a lot of these issues.”
Among bills backed by the organization, one would support affordable financing for Oregon’s small farmers.
The “Aggie Bonds” bill, House Bill 2700, would create a beginning and expanding farmer loan program to assist beginning farmers in the acquisition of agricultural land and property.
Other bills backed by the group include HB2427, which would ban canola production in the Willamette Valley.