Advocacy nonprofit celebrates a decade of informing the public about the issues facing agriculture while exposing the false narratives and ulterior motives of among anti-farm actors
(EVERSON, Wash.) Save Family Farming, the outspoken farming advocacy organization, is celebrating 10 years of standing up for Washington state’s farmers and vigorously challenging false information promoted by anti-farm activists, agencies, politicians and media outlets. The work began with a coalition of farmers and farming supporters who organized their efforts in December 2015, following the formation of the affiliated Whatcom Family Farmers nonprofit earlier that year. What started as a focused effort quickly grew into a statewide voice for agriculture.
Save Family Farming’s earliest work centered on exposing the extensive false accusations and coordinated anti-farm lobbying effort known as the “What’s Upstream” campaign. Save Family Farming’s advocacy ultimately led to 145 members of Congress signing a letter condemning the effort and bringing its demise.
Since then, Save Family Farming has tackled a wide range of other issues threatening the future and viability of family farms in Washington. They include, among many other things, pushing back against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s ongoing attack on farms in the Lower Yakima Valley, correcting activists’ false accusations about the federal H-2A guest worker program, opposing the Washington State Department of Ecology’s efforts to push farm-killing regulations, and highlighting the harm to both farms and farmworkers from the state’s new farm overtime law.
“People were saying, ‘Hey, you know, this might really work. This might be doing something positive for us,’” said Gerald Baron, Save Family Farming’s founding executive director, during a recent live social media broadcast about the organization’s history. “The more Save Family Farming [speaks out] in the coming years, the stronger the farming community will be in dealing with the challenges which always seem to be getting greater and greater.”
Save Family Farming remains firmly farmer-led and focused on unifying the farming community to speak with one strong voice. The organization is governed by a board of farmers representing many of Washington’s diverse agricultural sectors, with Ben Tindall serving as the Executive Director. The organization continues to expand through outreach to traditional and digital media outlets, while also developing its own channels and platforms to communicate directly with the public. This work continues to expand Save Family Farming’s reach and impact on reporting, regulation, and legislation affecting family farmers. Educating the non-farm public about farming is essential to the group.
“We’re just getting started,” said Tindall. “I’m honored to carry forward the legacy that began 10 years ago alongside our board of directors and staff. Our mission has grown clearer as has our passion to protect the future of family farming in Washington state with an unwavering commitment to the truth in communicating with the public about farming and how their food is produced.”
Press Contact: Dillon Honcoop, dhoncoop@savefamilyfarming.org