Small Farmers Struggling with Climate Stresses

WWNO – New Orleans Public Radio reports on the challenges faced by small farmers dealing with extreme weather. While USDA paid more than $16 billion over the past two years to farmers who lost crops due to extreme weather, some say that insurance and compensation programs are hard for small farmers who raise diverse crops to access. USDA is launching new programs and efforts designed to address this issue, and there are efforts to ensure that the next Farm Bill will also provide more help to small farmers. However, the number of small farms continues to decline, according to USDA figures, and industry analysts expect extreme weather trends to continue to worsen. In Louisiana in January, farmers attended the inaugural Louisiana Farmers Climate Convening to learn more about impacts that climate change is having on small-scale farming and their options for reducing climate-caused stresses.
Related ATTRA topic area: Climate Solutions