County Farm Bureaus honored for active engagement and membership growth

» December 6, 2005 «

Political action, grassroots mobilization and membership growth activities earned awards for California county Farm Bureaus, which were honored for their achievements at the 87th California Farm Bureau Federation Annual Meeting in Monterey.

Understanding that collaborative solutions to urban growth promote winning friends, the Ventura County Farm Bureau earned an award for establishing the Ag Futures Alliance, a grassroots effort to educate its community about the benefits and business of farming. Convening a summit on farm labor housing, the Alliance was able to change zoning laws to allow an increase in the availability of housing on farmland.

The Kings County Farm Bureau was honored for programs including its lead role in obtaining funds to conduct research on the impacts of new air quality rules, hosting a cotton harvest safety event and introducing more than 1200 third graders to life on the farm.

Extreme motivation, intense education and volunteer action allowed the Sonoma County Farm Bureau to defeat a local ballot measure that would have limited farmers' choices in utilizing biotechnology. By leading the local Family Farmers Alliance, the county Farm Bureau rallied support, including endorsements for its campaign from major news outlets.

Dozens of tractors came to the county building, as the Merced County Farm Bureau stood up to urban planners in their county to stop development of lands within designated agricultural zones. The county Farm Bureau earned honors for preserving the farming way of life, by standing up to the county planning commission and successfully opposing a golf and RV park that was to be built on prime agricultural land.

Grassroots outreach, political engagement and the launch of the California Plan to Protect Family Farms netted more than 15,000 new members for California county Farm Bureaus in 2005. County Farm Bureaus earned awards for their active involvement in educating and encouraging memberships for farmers and consumers alike, and for stressing the importance of speaking up for the preservation of California's agricultural heritage.

The California Farm Bureau Federation, the state's largest farm organization, works to protect family farms and ranches on behalf of more than 88,000 members.

Contact: Dave Kranz
Phone: 916/561-5550
news@cfbf.com

Permission for use is granted, however, credit must be made to the California Farm Bureau Federation when reprinting this item.