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The Food Dialogues is a site created and managed by the U.S. Farmers & Ranchers Alliance (USFRA). USFRA created The Food Dialogues to answer Americans’ questions about how food is grown and raised. This organization, which is a coalition of farmers, ranchers and their industry partners, is committed to continuously improving how they grow and raise food that provides healthy choices for people everywhere. Through The Food Dialogues, USFRA hopes to bring together different viewpoints on farming and ranching and the future of food to solve our most challenging problems.

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Questions Within: Food Affordability & Accessibliity

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I am in the process of starting small milling company. I would like to start milling Oats. Where can I buy dried whole oats seeds for my milling company located in New Castle, Delaware? Frederick Ebede All Peoples Food 19 King Court New Castle DE 197210

Author: Fred

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Topic: Food Affordability & Accessibliity

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Comment (0)

0

Vote

How can I be involved? I feel in my Spirit there should not be hunger in our world with all the blessings we received from God, yet so many people go to bed hungry or they may not even have food when they work in the morning or afternoon. Let us eradicate hunger from the Planet Earth. How can I be involved? I would like to start a farm here in the USA and go to developing nations and help out by training locals and starting farms to provide employment and food on their table. How can I be involved, please?

Author: Fred

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Topic: Food Affordability & Accessibliity

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Comment (0)

0

Vote

How can small family poultry farms provide local pastured poultry and eggs if the state regulations are designed for large commercial agriculture?

Author: CJ

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Topic: Food Affordability & Accessibliity

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Comment (0)

0

Vote

So much focus is on organically grown food as our only future solution to providing food and good stewardship. Can't we use the years of crop management we already have in place and just do more careful monitoring and teaching about uses? If you know real farmers and ranchers then you know all their real grievances about organics. The likelihood of most farmers/ranchers switching their operations to organic is small. Instead, why not ensure they are working safely and our food is safe, too?

Author: HeatherP

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Topic: Food Affordability & Accessibliity

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Comment (0)

0

Vote

Are consumers aware that chickens are too cheap? Modern chicken farming has gotten way too expensive, I haven't gotten a raise in 8 years. Several poultry companies are going bankrupt. Government mandates and subsidies for ethanol and over production are the reasons. Growing chickens in this market is no longer a way to make even a basic living on the farm.

Author: collegestfarm

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Topic: Food Affordability & Accessibliity

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Comment (0)

0

Vote

It seems to me that the question of feeding a population has more to do with logistics and distribution than sheer production capability. Right now, there is more food being produced than is currently consumed, but many areas are hungry just because there are *no grocery stores* where they are. Can you imagine what it's like to have to drive 50 miles to buy some produce that isn't rotting in some gas station convenience store? We need to work harder to eliminate 'food deserts' as well as end food waste, not grow more and more food for saturated markets!

Author: BrowserMedia

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Topic: Food Affordability & Accessibliity

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Comment (0)

0

Vote

With the unemployment in our country so high, why shouldn't the government subsidize farm laborers, so that people other than immigrants are willing to work in the fields? This would help farmers and ranchers help US citizens find work, and it would tend to manage some problems of the money gap in the agricultural industry. As it stands the raw materials that come from farms and ranches are not valorized until they are processed. Thus processors of farm and ranch production can pay US citizens, while many farms must rely on rock bottom wages to make a profit on non value added harvest.

Author: ajwriter

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Topic: Food Affordability & Accessibliity

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Comment (1)

1

Vote

Along with organic community farms, make the vegetables and produce, dairy and chicken safe and affordable for someone earning even minimum wage!!

Author: gailflaherty@yahoo.com

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Topic: Food Affordability & Accessibliity

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Comment (3)

4

Vote

I would guess that most of the squabbling about the use of genetic enginneering and pesticides come from those countries with plenty of food or the resources to purchase them. Ask the 10,000 people in the world that die of starvation every day what they think!

Author: Dennis

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Topic: Food Affordability & Accessibliity

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Comment (2)

1

Vote

I believe that food quality is of a growing importance to consumers; "It is important what I put into my body" What changes can food producers make to gain more trust and earn their way with consumers. New regulations vs. supply and demand

Author: MNSoy

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Topic: Food Affordability & Accessibliity

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Comment (2)

3

Vote

How can we eliminate subsidies to corn/soybeans? If anything is subsidized at all, it should be production of real food, e.g., http://www.foodsafetynews.com/2011/09/ag-subsidies-fund-junk-food-report-says/

Author: Brian

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Topic: Food Affordability & Accessibliity

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Comment (2)

2

Vote

Amidst shrinking government services and rising costs of living, consumers can afford to sustain healthier diets only if they have adequate and reliable incomes. How do the agricultural, food processing and retail industries plan to reconcile the decades-long decline in real wages within the food system and in returns to farmers with the record food prices and record profits that we have seen in the past four years?

Author: Yi Wang

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Topic: Food Affordability & Accessibliity

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Comment (4)

21

Vote

I live in an apple growing region. Apples are now in season. Why are the local grocery stores bringing apples in from New Zealand? Can someone please show me the math on that one - I assume that it's cheaper for them - but how can it be?

Author: cinnamon kennedy

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Topic: Food Affordability & Accessibliity

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Comment (1)

1

Vote

Farmers are not all about food. Some grow corn and soybeans to be used as fuel, today because the price for fuel is going up. US ethanol policy also influences the economic factors a corn/soybean farmer makes. These types of decision making activities get reported in the news as farmers making a choice of fuel over food. Can you help us understand how grain food producers are really impacted and what other factors are considered before a farmer decides fuel over food?

Author: USFRA

:

Topic: Food Affordability & Accessibliity

:

Comment (0)

3

Vote

Amidst shrinking government services and rising costs of living, consumers can afford to sustain healthier diets only if they have adequate and reliable incomes. How do the agricultural, food processing and retail industries plan to reconcile the decades-long decline in real wages within the food system and in returns to farmers with the record food prices and record profits that we have seen in the past four years?

Author: Yi Wang

:

Topic: Food Affordability & Accessibliity

:

Comment (4)

21

Vote

Along with organic community farms, make the vegetables and produce, dairy and chicken safe and affordable for someone earning even minimum wage!!

Author: gailflaherty@yahoo.com

:

Topic: Food Affordability & Accessibliity

:

Comment (3)

4

Vote

Farmers are not all about food. Some grow corn and soybeans to be used as fuel, today because the price for fuel is going up. US ethanol policy also influences the economic factors a corn/soybean farmer makes. These types of decision making activities get reported in the news as farmers making a choice of fuel over food. Can you help us understand how grain food producers are really impacted and what other factors are considered before a farmer decides fuel over food?

Author: USFRA

:

Topic: Food Affordability & Accessibliity

:

Comment (0)

3

Vote

I believe that food quality is of a growing importance to consumers; "It is important what I put into my body" What changes can food producers make to gain more trust and earn their way with consumers. New regulations vs. supply and demand

Author: MNSoy

:

Topic: Food Affordability & Accessibliity

:

Comment (2)

3

Vote

How can we eliminate subsidies to corn/soybeans? If anything is subsidized at all, it should be production of real food, e.g., http://www.foodsafetynews.com/2011/09/ag-subsidies-fund-junk-food-report-says/

Author: Brian

:

Topic: Food Affordability & Accessibliity

:

Comment (2)

2

Vote

I live in an apple growing region. Apples are now in season. Why are the local grocery stores bringing apples in from New Zealand? Can someone please show me the math on that one - I assume that it's cheaper for them - but how can it be?

Author: cinnamon kennedy

:

Topic: Food Affordability & Accessibliity

:

Comment (1)

1

Vote

I would guess that most of the squabbling about the use of genetic enginneering and pesticides come from those countries with plenty of food or the resources to purchase them. Ask the 10,000 people in the world that die of starvation every day what they think!

Author: Dennis

:

Topic: Food Affordability & Accessibliity

:

Comment (2)

1

Vote

With the unemployment in our country so high, why shouldn't the government subsidize farm laborers, so that people other than immigrants are willing to work in the fields? This would help farmers and ranchers help US citizens find work, and it would tend to manage some problems of the money gap in the agricultural industry. As it stands the raw materials that come from farms and ranches are not valorized until they are processed. Thus processors of farm and ranch production can pay US citizens, while many farms must rely on rock bottom wages to make a profit on non value added harvest.

Author: ajwriter

:

Topic: Food Affordability & Accessibliity

:

Comment (1)

1

Vote

It seems to me that the question of feeding a population has more to do with logistics and distribution than sheer production capability. Right now, there is more food being produced than is currently consumed, but many areas are hungry just because there are *no grocery stores* where they are. Can you imagine what it's like to have to drive 50 miles to buy some produce that isn't rotting in some gas station convenience store? We need to work harder to eliminate 'food deserts' as well as end food waste, not grow more and more food for saturated markets!

Author: BrowserMedia

:

Topic: Food Affordability & Accessibliity

:

Comment (0)

0

Vote

Are consumers aware that chickens are too cheap? Modern chicken farming has gotten way too expensive, I haven't gotten a raise in 8 years. Several poultry companies are going bankrupt. Government mandates and subsidies for ethanol and over production are the reasons. Growing chickens in this market is no longer a way to make even a basic living on the farm.

Author: collegestfarm

:

Topic: Food Affordability & Accessibliity

:

Comment (0)

0

Vote

So much focus is on organically grown food as our only future solution to providing food and good stewardship. Can't we use the years of crop management we already have in place and just do more careful monitoring and teaching about uses? If you know real farmers and ranchers then you know all their real grievances about organics. The likelihood of most farmers/ranchers switching their operations to organic is small. Instead, why not ensure they are working safely and our food is safe, too?

Author: HeatherP

:

Topic: Food Affordability & Accessibliity

:

Comment (0)

0

Vote

How can small family poultry farms provide local pastured poultry and eggs if the state regulations are designed for large commercial agriculture?

Author: CJ

:

Topic: Food Affordability & Accessibliity

:

Comment (0)

0

Vote

How can I be involved? I feel in my Spirit there should not be hunger in our world with all the blessings we received from God, yet so many people go to bed hungry or they may not even have food when they work in the morning or afternoon. Let us eradicate hunger from the Planet Earth. How can I be involved? I would like to start a farm here in the USA and go to developing nations and help out by training locals and starting farms to provide employment and food on their table. How can I be involved, please?

Author: Fred

:

Topic: Food Affordability & Accessibliity

:

Comment (0)

0

Vote

I am in the process of starting small milling company. I would like to start milling Oats. Where can I buy dried whole oats seeds for my milling company located in New Castle, Delaware? Frederick Ebede All Peoples Food 19 King Court New Castle DE 197210

Author: Fred

:

Topic: Food Affordability & Accessibliity

:

Comment (0)

0

Vote

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