Safe Fields and Food

NEW FACTSHEET Environmental health and farmworker advocacy organizations are urging the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to adhere to proven science when assessing the safety of chemicals regulated under its statutory authority, and warn against the misuse of New Approach Methods (NAMs) to designate pesticides and other harmful chemicals as safe. A new fact sheet explains that NAMs -  which are mostly unproven and include biochemical, molecular, and cell-based assays and computational models widely promoted by the chemical industry as an alternative to rodent tests - “frequently understate or incorrectly evaluate hazard and risk with potentially harmful consequences for workers, families, wildlife and ecosystems.”"We are alarmed that EPA is relying on these new, unproven tests to justify reducing protection from pesticide exposure. Farmworkers and their children will bear the brunt of this reckless decision." stated Anne Katten of California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation, who coordinates Coming Clean’s collaborative team on Farmworker Health and Justice. Read the factsheet in English and Spanish.

The leader of an Albuquerque cooperative that provides access to New Mexico-grown organic produce and meat was selected as the recipient of a prestigious award from the James Beard Foundation. Helga Garcia-Garza, the executive director of Agri-Cultura Network, a farmer-owned cooperative, and their community-supported agricultural program, La Cosecha CSA, will be awarded the 2024 James Beard Foundation Leadership Award under the “food security and access” category. Watch the video posted by the James Beard Foundation. 

The Environmental Protection Agency unveiled a proposal this week to ban a controversial pesticide that is widely used on celery, tomatoes and other fruits and vegetables. The EPA released its plan on Tuesday, nearly a week after a ProPublica investigation revealed the agency had laid out a justification for increasing the amount of acephate allowed on food by removing limits meant to protect children’s developing brains. In calling for an end to all uses of the pesticide on food, the agency cited evidence that acephate harms workers who apply the chemical as well as the general public and young children, who may be exposed to the pesticide through contaminated drinking water.

We're advocating for a Farm Bill that reduces pesticide use, protects farmworker, and builds food sovereignty. In 2023, we wrote letters to both Agriculture Committees that were endorsed by 50 organizations; and sent members to D.C. where they held 23 in-person meetings with members of Congress that we complemented with another five virtual meetings.  We continue our farm bill work this year, with a focus on supporting CFAC member organizations, including Alianza Nacional de Campesinas. Learn about the marker bills we support, and the status of the farm bill in this update blog. 

Today members of Coming Clean’s Farmworker Health and Justice Team submitted a comment urging the Council on Economic Quality (CEQ) to improve its Environmental Justice (EJ) Scorecard to ensure that federal agencies are providing Justice40 benefits to farmworkers. Phase One of the EJ Scorecard was launched in 2023, as mandated by President Biden’s Executive Order 14008 on Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad. It is intended to track the progress of federal agencies in ensuring that 40% of climate, housing, energy, pollution remediation, and related federal benefits flow to “disadvantaged communities that are marginalized, underserved, and overburdened by pollution,” as part of the implementation of the Justice40 Initiative. Farmworkers are “a particularly important EJ community,” states the comment, because they often live in remote, rural areas, are disproportionately exposed to toxic pesticides, intense heat and high humidity, and wildfire smoke and pollution, and experience other health stressors such as substandard housing, harsh working conditions, and lack of access to affordable healthcare. 

Since 2019, the Local Food Solutions project has been asking Dollar General to offer healthy, local food options in its stores, starting with four stores in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The South Valley of Albuquerque is the base of operations for the Agri-Cultura Network, a community-based and farmer-led cooperative that works to provide access to local and sustainably grown produce and spur local economic development. Agri-Cultura Network and its network of more than 70 farms and ranches use traditional and innovative agricultural practices to improve environmental and community stewardship and strengthen the agrarian and cultural heritage of their land and its residents. Local Food Solutions is offering a path forward for Dollar General to provide highly desirable, local food to its customers, and in doing so, reinvest in the communities where its stores operate.

This year, the environmental health and justice organizations, small-scale farmers and farmworker advocates that make up Coming Clean’s Climate, Food Agriculture and Climate (CFAC) team have been educating lawmakers on the need for a transformative 2023 Farm Bill. In a letter to the House and Senate Agriculture Committees and through in-person office visits, we’ve called for a Farm Bill that prioritizes community food sovereignty and equity, protects workers against exploitation, violence, and health harm, and incentivizes farmers to employ safer, regenerative, climate resilient practices that avoid the use of pesticides. Right now, the House Agriculture Committee members are submitting new language that will inform the contents of the 2023 Farm Bill, with a June 16th deadline. We are urging legislators to support the the following marker bills. Leer en español.