Thinking Global But Eating Local

American agriculture policy is the 600-pound gorilla in the room. No one understands what it's pounding its chest about, they just know they better get out of the way. This fall, there will be a new US Farm Bill, and now is the chance for people to change the system - and there are a number of groups to help you do it. For a primer on what the Farm Bill is and what could be done to it, go to the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy. They have some commonsense recommendations that will serve the common folk, rather than big agribusiness.

Core recommendations are to reform "commodity" programs (from corn to soy) to "establish a fair market price floor so that food companies, not taxpayers, pay their fair share to farmers." Also, they want to reverse the trend toward monopolies, and to foster local and regional food systems run by small-lot farmers. As well, they want to stop the US from dumping unwanted food on developing countries in the guise of Food Aid, and give untied, cash-based aid instead. Americans can send an online form-letter in favour of similar goals through the Farm and Food Policy Project, who will also deliver a basket of healthy local food to your Senator and Congress representatives for every 100 letters received. For greater oomph, pen your own eloquent letter or prepare your own indignant phone call against business as usual: look up contact info for your Congress rep or Senator here.

Global eaters and growers are counting on these changes. For instance, Canada is the recipient of heaps of artificially cheap US food, which is running our own farmers out of business (and hasn't done any good for the family farm in America, either). In Mexico, farmers growing heirloom corn have been ruined by the flood of cheap US corn, which is often genetically modified to boot. What we all need to do is learn to understand the gorilla so we can lead him out of the room. Can we dare to dream that some day the WTO will show him the door?