Fresh Take
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Fresh Take
Building Resilient Farm Communities: Navigating Disaster Relief and Recovery
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Join us for an enlightening episode of Fresh Take, offering invaluable insights into disaster relief and resilience within the farming community. Our special guests, Lisa Misch and Jaimie McGirt from RAFI, share their vast experience in guiding farmers through the challenges posed by natural disasters. From hurricanes to droughts, we discuss the essential support systems that enable farmers to recover and thrive, highlighting the important roles played by the Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) and Farm Service Agency (FSA) during times of crisis.
Lisa and Jaimie share their work, highlighting the importance of disaster recovery programs and keeping detailed records. We discuss the challenges of recovery and practical steps farmers can take to navigate the aftermath of extreme weather.
We conclude with a call to action for listeners to engage with RAFI's mission, advocating for a more equitable food system. Don't miss this crucial discussion on building resilient farm communities and the vital support farmers need to face natural disasters.
Additional resources:
USDA Disaster Discovery Tool
Navigating Disaster Programs for Farmers
Fuel the Work Behind the Mic—and Beyond
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Disaster Relief and Farm Resilience
Speaker 1Welcome to Fresh Take , where we at Florida Organic Growers speak to food systems experts about topics related to organic and sustainable agriculture , healthy lifestyles and the environment . To help us continue our programs at FOG , including our podcast , consider becoming a sponsor . For more information on sponsorship , check out our Get Involved page on our website , wwwfoginfoorg out our Get Involved page on our website , wwwfoginfoorg .
Speaker 2Welcome back to Fresh Take . I am your host , lana Shahabedin , and today we're diving into a powerful and timely topic disaster relief and resilience in the farming community . When natural disasters strike , farmers often find themselves on the front lines , facing enormous losses and challenges that can disrupt their livelihoods and impact the entire food system . We'll explore how farmers can rebuild and thrive even in the face of adversity , and the critical role that disaster relief and support play in helping them make a comeback . Joining us today are two dedicated and inspiring leaders from RAFI USA . Rafi stands for Rural Advancement Foundation International Lisa Misch , Managing Director of Programs , and Jamie McGirt , agricultural Conservation and Market Access Manager . Together , lisa and Jamie bring a wealth of knowledge and practical experience to today's conversation . They'll share insights on how disaster relief efforts work in farming , the unique challenges rural communities face and the critical need for building a support system that enables farmers to recover and thrive . Welcome to our show , ladies . Good to be here .
Speaker 3Thanks for having us .
Speaker 2So excited to have you both here today , and before we get you know started in terms of discussing more of Rafi's vision and missions , I would love to dive into your backgrounds and what specifically you each focus on . So , lisa , I'd like to start off with you and learning more about how you came to Rafi , what your you know background entails , and how and how you navigate disaster relief in your role .
Speaker 4Yeah , so I started at RAFI about seven and a half years ago and my original role was with farmers markets and helping farmers markets implement SNAP incentive programs around the state as a means of increasing food access for the community . From that project I moved to many different areas of RAFI's work , including several years of hurricanes and being able to jump into farmer assistance and response work . Over time , I've spent more of my work focusing on our federally funded programs and helping manage and expand them . So currently , in my role as managing director of programs , I oversee most of our programs that involve direct assistance with farmers , helping them access programs or resources , and that includes a lot of our work right now around helping farmers get connected with existing USDA resources that are there to help them in times of crisis .
Speaker 2That's great . I love that you have a background in farmers , markets and SNAP coordination , because that's obviously a really integral role in our food system as well , and I'm excited to hear more about your role as we dig deeper into this topic . And , jamie , I would love to also hear , similar to Lisa , how you came into this position as Agricultural Conservation and Market Access Manager and what that really means .
Speaker 3Sure . So I came to RAFI with a background in some natural resource conservation as well as agricultural production . I've been working at the grassroots level and began doing statewide grassroots support work and that brought me to RAFI and I love being able to shift to direct farmer technical assistance . That was about two and a half years ago and at RAFI since I've shifted between a couple of programs , but what I love doing most is providing direct technical assistance , helping farmers access USDA programs . Direct technical assistance helping farmers access USDA programs , particularly those that help them improve natural resource conservation on their farmland . Farmers do that very proactively and then after a natural disaster , I'm finding it's kind of first and top of mind for producers when they're beginning to recover .
Speaker 2Absolutely , and I love that you also bring this background in grassroots , because FOG Florida Organic Growers is also a grassroots organization and so we definitely align with the idea of being farmers for farmers , kind of thing . So we love to hear that and it's great that you guys are both providing this hands-on work directly for this population that really can benefit from the support programs that are out there . So , for folks that are not familiar with Rafi and are not sure what you guys really do as a whole , can you tell us , lisa , a bit about your vision and mission ?
Speaker 4Yeah , so Raffi is based in Pittsburgh , north Carolina , but serves farmers and farm communities across the Southeast and US Caribbean islands . Our mission is challenging the root causes of unjust food systems and supporting and advocating for economically , racially and ecologically just farm communities . So , within that mission , what we're really looking for is a thriving and equitable food system where communities have dignity to agency , where they're supported by just policies and where the corporations and institutions around them are accountable to the communities that they impact around them are accountable to the communities that they impact , incredible .
Speaker 2I mean . That's that's a mouthful Economically , racially and ecologically . Just farm communities . That's a really big , you know target , I think . And so in that kind of work , you know what , what kind of programs do you guys currently work on and how is it addressing those things ?
Speaker 4Yes , and we do have those three economically , racially and ecologically paired together because they form that holistic change that we hope to see . So our programs are focused first on the direct , on the ground assistance and having that build up the foundation towards systemic change . So direct service programs include projects that help farmers access resources or services . So this includes our farm advocacy program , which helps provide financial counseling to farmers that are in crisis . We have a Farmers of Color Network that is comprised of over 900 farmers across 13 states and US Virgin Islands , puerto Rico , connecting them with services and educational opportunities .
Speaker 4Our Resources for Resilient Farms project , which I think I'll be able to talk about a bit later , is specifically geared towards connecting farmers with USDA programs .
Speaker 4We also have work around Just Foods , developing regionally resilient seed varieties and challenging corporate power and emboldening farmers to challenge corporate power that's existing within their farm communities that is limiting their viability and success . Beyond just work directly with farmers , we help farmers and communities connect and empower each other . So our Come to the Table program is designed around helping faith communities be empowered to contribute towards a just food system and connect with farmers in their area . And then , through all this work , we are also helping support connecting farmers with local markets . This on the ground work then feeds into our policy program and our team and we mainly work on a federal level as opposed to state . But in that regard we're looking at opportunities to influence policies at the administrative and agency level and the legislative level that are going to address sort of the common barriers and issues that we see when we are working with farmers on the ground to contribute towards that systemic change .
Speaker 2Wow , I mean , that's a lot of different things that you guys are doing and it's all really vital in terms of you know being able to connect people and offering a network and really just kind of this umbrella group of you know tackling different aspects of equity and justice in the food system . So I'm wondering you guys mentioned USDA programs in your introductions and also the emphasis of helping connecting farmers with resources , so can you dive a little bit deeper into what exactly that looks like and how you help them navigate some of the things that are out there ?
Speaker 4Sure , yeah , and this touches on the Resources for Resilient Farms program I mentioned , which the mission of that program is to provide plain language education and one-on-one technical assistance to farmers that want to access USDA programs and services and specifically farmers that have been historically underserved by USDA agencies . So within that work , it can be all the way from like light touch introduction assistance , getting farmers connected with USDA , to really in-depth . So when I say like light touch , just getting a farmer established with their local USDA office if they have never worked with them before is a really big step towards getting them closer to accessing services .
Speaker 4So that could be helping them get their farm number or getting those initial documents set up , making sure that they know where their local service center is . That work is helpful in the disaster work that we'll talk about . It's really foundational .
Impact of Natural Disasters on Agriculture
Speaker 4And then , when we get into specific programs , like Jamie's , work is with NRCS . That involves talking with the farmer about what their goals are and really thinking about it broadly as what is this farmer's holistic goal , and then doing sort of the like , the bridging or the connection of this is what I'm hearing . These are the certain NRCS programs that could help you reach that goal . And now I'll help you think through the application process , explain what the timeline is going to be and be sort of that guiding navigator as they work through a process which otherwise they would . They might be doing completely on their own or , you know , might get varying degrees of support from their local service center . So that's the real goal of that program and we do NRCS program support and we also have worked with FSA loans and the emergency programs within FSA .
Speaker 2That's incredible and for those that are listening who are not familiar with NRCS or FSA , can you tell us what those stand for and what those organizations typically do ?
Speaker 4loans , access to credit for farmers , as well as kind of collection of risk management programs to assist farmers in different disasters or crises . And NRCS is the Natural Resource Conservation Service , which is focused on helping farmers implement conservation practices .
Speaker 2Yes , I mean , there's so many acronyms out there right In the food system , and funny because to us a lot of these things we throw around on a daily basis , but we might have some folks listening that are pretty new to the farming industry and might not be as familiar .
Speaker 2So thank you for explaining that and giving us some clarity . And you know , we definitely want to kind of switch gears a little bit and talk about the impact of natural disasters , especially in the agricultural world , and how this really affects the folks working in this field . And so I think you know a lot of the times when we see a hurricane coming and you know other types of natural disasters that are headed our way , our first thought is not really what's going to happen to the farmers . It's really , you know , more of a individualistic perspective of okay , I need to prep my home , my family need to get all the necessities , my family needs to get all the necessities . So you know , I'd love to flesh out this idea that , well , all of our agricultural actors are also really affected by this , and I'd like to hear from you guys how you know well , first of all , what kinds of disasters typically affect farmers and what normally happens to them during this time ? What are the main things that you guys see in your work and how do you try to address that ?
Speaker 3So I would describe disasters , as they relate to farmland , as significant weather events , and these weather events can happen acutely , they can also happen over a long term , and the types of acute disasters or short term disasters that we commonly see include hurricanes , which bring significant flooding , we've learned . They can bring landslides , they can bring strong wind damage and just heavy saturation from days of rainfall . But then there are also longer term disaster events , such as drought or long periods of precipitation that would create these flooding or other conditions . So programs that assist with disaster recovery depend on the type of weather event that occurred and the duration of that weather event weather event that occurred and the duration of that weather event and based on those events , the USDA will activate certain programs that would assist farmers for those disasters . And the kinds of activities that we see during these different disaster or weather events really range widely .
Speaker 3What we have seen this season in 2024 , with hurricanes , is that there are a lot of disaster events associated with just a single storm . So , with a hurricane bringing extreme flooding and heavy rainfall , landslides , wind damage , we see everything from contamination of soil and water bodies as well as below ground water sources like water wells being compromised after being flooded . We see a mass amount of topsoil lost in the event of flooding , and then we also see the soil column being affected when there have been heavy rains and rainfall has saturated that soil column . All of these things lead to the loss of harvest or production . So farmers who've had harvested crops that are in storage might be affected by power outages or total washout as a result of a flood , whereas products that are still in production , whether they're crops or they're livestock , may be destroyed or there can be significant livestock death Following the event .
Speaker 3There is increased susceptibility to disease . A lot of us are wondering what is going to happen in the seed bank after an extreme flooding event and what will farmers face in terms of weed pressure now , the year or more after a disaster event . And then there comes the loss or destruction to supplies and infrastructure , everything from irrigation systems that are damaged or washed away , high tunnels can be completely flattened or you may have just a little bit of plastic damage . Fencing can have tree debris from tree fall , or , if floodwaters actually rise and run over fence lines , you can get a lot of trash and sand and silt debris piled up on those fence lines , creating damage . Wow , so essentially it's a really long list actually of the effect of even just one weather event on a single farm .
Speaker 2Yeah , I mean , that's an extensive list of things that can happen , and it seems that a lot of those things would be really hard to recover from . So what do you guys typically see in relation to the recovery process ? You know what does that mean to the farmer . How do they , how do they go about picking themselves back up when something like that happens to their farm ?
Speaker 3Well , from our experience this year , it can really range . I think it first depends on the degree or significance of damage or losses . One thing that's been notable in 2024 is the loss of essential functions in their community creates just an enormous level of grief and I think some indecision and what seems to come first is farmers' ability to kind of cope with that level of loss . So how long does it take to recover for farmers who had every level of damage ? We're hearing that it is going to take years , particularly the loss of topsoil . When a farmer is described that they spent 13 years building up that topsoil layer and now in a single flood they've lost over a foot of that topsoil , that's a devastating loss that just can't be reapplied in one year . Like a new high tunnel structure could be heartbreaking .
Speaker 3Yeah , so that's why I say like it really varies and then , depending on their financial position and their ability to foot the bill of recovery up front can really determine their recovery phases . So how quickly can they purchase supplies and equipment and infrastructure to get back into immediate production ? What is the state of soil contamination ? What rest period will that soil need before crops can be replanted ? And , lisa , would you add anything else there ?
Speaker 4Yeah , I was going that direction of what you were just saying . You know , immediately after a disaster , I think the immediate response for farmers is the cleanup stage of triage . You know fixing fences if livestock got out , clearing debris and you know trees across roads . And then it moves into that question of , ok , yeah , how can I get back into some form of production . Think a lot of farms you know at least in 2024 , may need to kind of , yeah , rethink their farming approach and what they can potentially grow in the next year and what markets will be available . I mean , that's not something we've mentioned yet . But another impact of disasters is just the impact to the local food economy , which then impacts them . So some farms may have minimal infrastructure and physical damage but a restaurant may be closed that they sold to . So it does just impact the entire farm business plan . And , yeah , after the immediate response , you're talking about a multi-year recovery plan to potentially get things back to where they want to be recovery plan to potentially get things back to where they want to be .
Speaker 2Yeah , I mean , you guys touched on a couple of things that really struck a chord . Also , you know one the mental health aspect of this is like that level of grief that you experience must be really high and coming back from that is tough . And then there's also the community that's impacted . That could be that local restaurant that's sourcing from the farm or even the farmer's markets . So there's a lot of seems to be connections between , obviously , the impact on the farm and then the outside community , even including the average consumer . So anyone that's listening that's not actively a grower or a rancher . There's always going to be impacts that we might feel on our end . So different organizations are obviously out there to help farmers navigate this kind of disaster relief . I know , obviously , florida Organic Growers . We have our own hurricane resources page on our homepage , foginfoorg . But I'm curious to hear the role of Rafi and how you guys navigate the disaster relief , specifically in the resources that you provide and you know the actual steps you take once a disaster hits .
Speaker 3Yeah , maybe Lisa , you want to share broadly and then I can dive in to any details .
Speaker 4Yeah , that sounds good , so I can take you know
Disaster Recovery Farm Documentation and Support
Speaker 4this . Hurricane Helene is an example of what response can look like where you know , first we are just trying to understand , like , what is happening on the ground , how are farmers being impacted ? So we reach out to farmers where we have known connections and you know , assess like are they OK , what has happened on their farm or in their area , on their farm or in their area . Once we've started to get an assessment of what's happening on the ground , we also want to understand what federal programs are starting to switch on . And there's a whole acronym list of different programs that may turn on and each can be a little different in terms of when it can be activated .
Speaker 4You know whether a federal disaster area has been officially declared or whether a county needs to request that a program come online . It can vary . So there's just a lot of clarification that our policy team has taken on of reaching out to national , state and local USDA offices and then our work is getting that information back to farmers and getting that information back to organizations or kind of trusted community members that can be that conduit of information to farmers during kind of this tumultuous time . Another important part of our work is getting that like initial , really important information to farmers about how to document what's happened on their farm and how to contact a USDA service center so that they can tap into these programs . Jamie , I don't know , do you want to talk more about that piece of it ?
Speaker 3Sure . So Lisa mentions like the kind of first line of support being the first information they should have , and that translates to what steps would they need to take initially ? And those are important to know , I think , in advance of disasters as well as in the moments after a disaster , because once the disaster struck we have the difficulty of moving through the loss and the grief of that , and so taking in information and being able to decipher it and understand how it applies to you after that disaster event is just more stressful and it's more difficult Absolutely . So one thing we try to do proactively is help farmers understand after the disaster event what are the first steps they should take , and one of those is documentation . It helps tremendously to even have a good practice of documenting the activities of their farm and what production looks like before a disaster event . For farmers who do a lot of promotion of their farm on social media , this might come easy because you have a stack of photos on hand showing what level of production you were in before the storm . One recommendation I would have is kind of have a couple areas on your farm where you just consistently take a photo in the same angle or direction a couple of times a year just to document what kind of the big picture of your farm looks like , Because when it comes time to reporting what kind of damage or losses you had after extreme weather events , you need to be able to demonstrate what was there before and thus what was lost or damaged . Some important things I think to document after a storm would be any sand or silt rock debris that has been deposited on your farm after flooding , any tree debris from trees falling or trees being swept through floodwaters on your farm property , particularly any of this debris that ends up on fence lines , creating damage or damage to buildings on the inside or outside . Other kinds of debris might be trash , whether it's from your own farm , such as that high tunnel that's now been destroyed , or if you had plastic row cover , landscape fabric that's now tangled and deep buried into sand and silt , that kind of material would count as trash . But after a large flooding event , you may also have trash from off the farm that's now been deposited on your land , and then you may have damage like your crop fields or your grazing pastures are now uneven , so sediment has washed or gullied , and so you have these kind of deep rivets that now make your production after the storm more challenging . So you would want to take pictures of this kind of misshapen crop or grazing pastures where you would ultimately need to do some re-leveling or grading of that sediment to get it back into shape for production .
Speaker 3Later . There may be photos you need to take of physical structure damage , like trees on farm buildings , if that caused any power outage , or if you had electrical systems inside of those buildings that are a core functional piece of your farm , such as power boxes that powered your water . Well , if there's damage to those systems , it would be important to get even photographs of those smaller components and then any areas where you were in active production at the time of a disaster , such as your crop fields , if that crop field was in contact with flood water for any amount of time . You would need to have photos of not necessarily the crops underwater that might not be possible but photos of the state of crops after the flood event , and then you would want to have photos of any crops that are just completely destroyed as well . Outside of flooding , the other kind of water damage that can be really significant for crop loss is heavy rainfall that then creates saturated soil , and if it is so saturated after so much rainfall that then the field begins to flood due to rainfall and not water flowing from one water source onto your farm . If that difference kind of makes sense , you'd still want to have pictures of the crop damage as a result of that saturation .
Speaker 3When it comes to livestock death , it feels particularly sensitive . It feels really hard to tell someone to take pictures of their dead livestock . It feels even harder to tell them to take a photo of where they buried any dead livestock . It's not an easy , easy thing to convey . However , if that farmer does want to have access to financial assistance for those losses after the fact , it would be a wise thing for them to do .
Speaker 2It sounds like the documentation part is really key in this recovery phase and I think that even more so , it sounds like the preparation before any kind of disaster might be even more important , because I don't think there are many folks that are . Might be even more important , because I don't think there are many folks that are , especially that are newer to the field of farming , might know that being able to document your field , like you said , in the same angle , in the same spot , kind of before everything happens , I think it's more common for folks to obviously take those photos after the fact . If you come across , you know growers that are not necessarily documenting everything properly . Are there other ways or other kind of methods of evidence that they can provide outside of a picture ? Or you know something that's more tangible like that ?
Speaker 3Absolutely . I'm glad you asked that because the photos are just one part of documentation so I can discuss both notes and then what's called third party verification of damage or losses .
Disaster Recovery Assistance Programs Overview
Speaker 3So when it comes to taking notes about damages and losses , it's really important to note the date of the damage , what the source of the damage or the cause of the damage was from . So when I differentiated between your crop field being flooded because the creek rose and flooded your cropland for two hours , versus your crops flooded because of heavy rainfall , that makes a really big difference down the line . So noting what the source of the damage or cause of the damage was , and then when we talk about the extent of the damage , farmers will want to document how much time they spend up cleaning certain categories of damage or losses . So how much time do you spend after the extreme weather event cleaning up debris ? How much time does your machine run ? If you have any on-farm equipment , if volunteers come to your farm , their volunteer time can count . So counting the number of volunteers and the amount of time they spend cleaning up debris and the amount of time your neighbor spends and their machine run time . So if they bring their skid steer over to your property and that machine is running for four hours doing some leveling and grading work . You want to have a record of the time that they spent and the reason that matters is if you want a certain type of financial assistance , you would need to be able to demonstrate that those activities were done .
Speaker 3The other kind of notes that can be helpful are what level of crop loss you experienced or the number of livestock lost .
Speaker 3So if you know you had however many acres of which crops were planted , or if you're a small scale producer , you know how many hundred foot rows of specialty crops you had in production , it's important to take note of the particular amount of crops lost .
Speaker 3It might not mean there's financial assistance for those available yet , but it's important to have those in your records . For those available yet , but it's important to have those in your records . Then , as soon as a farmer is able , they should have somebody who's a non-family member be a witness to the damage and losses . So this can be someone like a neighbor or a friend who comes out to the farm and takes their own notes about what they see , what's the extent and type of damage and loss , and it can even be fantastic if they take their own pictures . In certain weather events , especially one like Hurricane Helene , the Farm Service Agency , fsa , has issued what's called waivers that wouldn't necessarily require this level of documentation from producers due to the severity and wide scale of the disaster event . But not all disasters are treated that way , and so if farmers understood kind of at bare minimum , what kind of documentation they should take after a storm or a weather event , they would hold their foot in the door for maybe maximized assistance in the future .
Speaker 2Yeah , I mean the overview of documentation that you just provided I think is so key , and thank you for you know , kind of diving deeper into that , because I think that's really critical for folks to hear , so that , you know , they can have that in the back of their minds when these kinds of things , you know , take place , because oftentimes we don't see a lot of these things coming and so it's hard , I think , for a lot of these farmers and ranchers to kind of have that list of preparation ready to go , you know , in their head . And so this is , you know , really important , and I know that there are a lot of different recovery programs that exist from , you know , with livestock assistance , farm loans , farmland damage , crop losses , crop insurance and cleanup , and I'm sure we could spend , you know , an episode on each one of those things . But I would love to hear a little bit about some of the key programs that exist within those , and maybe maybe some of the ones that are the most commonly used or not known about as much as maybe they should be .
Speaker 4Yeah , and I will just emphasize again , we could spend an episode on each of these programs , because , you know , something that I'm thinking about as we're having this conversation is that each farm is unique and complex and out operates . Every disaster is unique and complex , and so disaster programs have to stretch a lot in order to fit these different situations , and so they can be sort of complex and unique in their own way . So there is this again , this whole list of different programs with interesting acronyms that can come on board . I would say they generally fall into the categories of recovery for livestock damage and losses , crop losses or damage damage to farmland or conservation efforts , and then for folks that may just be kind of struggling with lack of access to credit . In terms of the livestock and the crop losses , some of the things that come into play are Liv indemnity program , LIP , the non-insured disaster assistance program , which is known as NAP . I think those are kind of the two biggest , and then there's others that are specific to livestock forage , tree assistance , bees and fish and other types of feed that are stored . So again , you can get really deep into those , but the basics of it is that you are , as a farmer , trying to quantify the value of the loss or the damage that has occurred to your crop and livestock and then FSA is able to provide a percentage of what that loss was . It's not making you whole , but it's going to provide a certain degree of replacement of that lost crop or livestock In terms of the farmland damage .
Speaker 4If you're thinking about , well , the whole scope of soil loss or water contamination , things like that , there are programs that can help with the repair of different conservation enhancements , like the Emergency Conservation Program ECP is one that we're working on a lot right now and if we want to get into that more , Jay would have more information as well as the NRCS EQIP program program if they just want to do new conservation enhancements , and those operate as cost shares . So a farmer is going to be paying for some sort of repair enhancement and NRCS will provide a portion of what that cost is . And then , in terms of capital , if folks are having issues with access to funds , FSA provides an emergency loan program and there's also a disaster set-aside program . So if a farmer has an existing loan and is not going to be able to make their next payment , they can defer for a certain amount of time . So a wide assortment of different programs that each are complex but can assist in different sort of functions of the farm and different types of damage or loss .
Speaker 2Absolutely . And is there one place that folks listening can go to kind of see an overview of these recovery programs and learn more about those ?
Speaker 4Yeah , there's a really great page on our website that lists a number of these programs with in-depth information .
Speaker 3You can also go to referenced on Raffi's website will have kind of a chart that identifies each of these individual programs and practically what they support a farmer with and kind of at what stage after a disaster . So it's a great starting place because it's also in plain language terms . To complement that there's something called the disaster assistance tool on farmersgov and that disaster tool has you indicate , kind of the size of your farm , what types of agricultural products you had in production , what kind of storm or weather event created damage or losses , and then exactly what was damaged and lost , and that tool will give you a list of the programs it thinks and I say it right , A computer generates a list of what it thinks you will be eligible for . But we have found in some cases that there's some cracks in that tool , right , and so just because you don't see the program that you thought you'd be eligible for not listed there doesn't mean it's not available . But that is a tool and it's not available , but that is a tool and it's at least a starting point .
Speaker 3One thing we've done with farmers after Hurricane Milton and Hurricane Helene , and we will probably do going forward in extreme weather events , is helping farmers decipher what they are eligible for Because , as Lisa said , every farm is so unique and even in a region like Western North Carolina the damage to one farm isn't the same damage to the farm next door . So by offering some tailored technical assistance we can really understand the extent of damage and loss on a farm and then be the filter for the farmer . We take our knowledge of these individual programs and on the spot can identify which ones we think they should spend their time and effort applying for , and there will be some that they're probably eligible for . But is it really worth their time applying for that program ?
Speaker 2Yeah , see , that's great to know that you guys serve kind of as , like that , the middleman to see what different farmers and ranchers , like you said , might be eligible for and kind of filter through all the information , cause I think that it's kind of , you know , information overload to some people and they get a little bit overwhelmed with all that is out there and not knowing kind of where to start . So it's great to know that you guys exist and have the opportunity to kind of lend a hand and have , you know , the technical assistance component so that folks are not kind of stuck in the weeds . We are definitely also interested in just touching on what you know allies can do to help and our role as farmer advocates , rancher advocates , to support people in need in these times of crisis . So I would love to hear from you guys , you know , what are some of the action steps some folks can take to become an ally .
Speaker 4Yeah , I can start with some thoughts and , jamie , I'd be curious for yours as well , in terms of this role that you're just describing of being this middle entity of helping farmers find their way .
Speaker 4That's something that , yeah , we've seen is so helpful . I would never expect a farmer to know all these programs so deeply that they can make these decisions in these moments of crisis . So one thing that RAFI is doing right now is developing a training for folks that want to have some of this knowledge about different disaster programs , who could potentially connect with farmers and understand what their damage is and then point them in the right direction for programs they could access . And we have that training happening later this week and I think there'll likely be more to come . But just even the points that we've mentioned today about having a farmer write down the damage , take pictures , be that third-party verification , or even just be on a phone call when they are in a , a meeting , when they go into their USDA service center to be their second pair of ears , because they are an information overload and having a person to accompany them makes a difference . So that's what I would say . Jamie , do you have other thoughts ?
Speaker 2Lisa , I actually have a quick question for you about the training . Is that open to anyone ?
Speaker 4Lisa , I actually have a quick question for you about the training Is that open to anyone ? We are opening it to anyone and we're really focusing on different organizations that are already connected with farmers in some way .
Speaker 2And , like I mentioned , I believe there's going to be more in the future , but at the very least that's going to get recorded and put on our website if folks want to go and watch that . Incredible , okay , great , yeah , and we will definitely include some of these links in the about text for this episode . So folks can , you know , definitely try to learn more about how they can get involved and , jamie , I would love to hear from you as well
Community Support in Farm Disaster Relief
Speaker 2sure .
Speaker 3So the perspective I might bring for how allies could help comes from my experience in a lot of grassroots level work .
Speaker 3So seeing the skills and financial assets of community members who are non-affected and how those are applied to affected individuals seems to just activate so quickly after disasters seems to just activate so quickly after disasters .
Speaker 3I used to live in Western North Carolina for about 10 years and seeing the community response and even the farm to farm response supporting farmers after disaster has been really incredible .
Speaker 3And it's also very taxing to the very small organizations that have small numbers of staff and very small budgets but they're trying to do the most they can with the most they have .
Speaker 3And any ways that the general public can support with monetary donations or contributions to these organizations that really know farmers well , they understand the farmers' immediate needs and how those immediate needs are changing on a day-to-day or week-to-week basis can really go a long way . And for community residents who have very specific skill sets , it's been pretty amazing to see how neighbors can rebuild a bridge in just three days time to provide access to not just a farmer's land but other residents land that have now become inaccessible . So this event in Western North Carolina has been a very strong demonstration of mutual aid and grassroots support , and I can't speak to what's happening in Florida with Milton per se , but I wonder , if it's the same and I hope in future disasters as they seem to be more severe and more prevalent , how we're going to continue to see that outpouring of local donations and skills to support the agricultural community .
Speaker 2Yeah , I mean we definitely have seen a similar thing happen as a result of Hurricane Helene and Milton in the state of Florida , as far as communities coming together , and you know it's really telling to see just community members wanting to be involved in picking the pieces back up , so it is really inspiring to see that . And , on that note , I wanted to see if there are state specific resources that farmers and ranchers can find , specifically from Rafi , and also if you are able to share any information related to you know farmers that are transitioning to certified organic and you know how to navigate that when it comes to possibly finding some more resources in that regard .
Speaker 4I can talk a bit about , yeah , state by state resources . I think again there's a blog on our website that includes some of the specific state-by-state resources In general . You know , all the things that we've been mentioning for these farm programs are federal programs and so that's going to be , you know , similar , but it is up to kind of state agencies to determine specific parameters or waivers or things like that . So getting in touch with local or with kind of the state FSA and RCS offices is helpful . There's also , like DSNAP , disastersnap , disaster Unemployment Assistance . These things can look differently in different states and require kind of specific research .
Speaker 4So again , I would take a look at our website , but otherwise , you know , just really Googling specific like this state , this resource , because it can be expressed very differently in different regions . And then in terms of the you know , assistance for folks that are transitioning to organic . I think you know we I don't know if we have as much that we've done on that already , beyond just the questions about , like , water contamination , soil contamination . Jamie , have you seen anything else around that topic ?
Speaker 3I have a fair bit in terms of crop safety after an event . Small scale producers who , if they're growing on a small scale basis and I'm talking like maybe five acres of less , a very intensive vegetable production and specialty crop production , these growers , if they lost a field , they may have lost every bit of their crop . They may have lost every bit of their crop , and so it would be vital to understand , you know , what kind of water contact on those crops would deem them unsafe . So a lot of questions are coming up around crop safety . Our North Carolina extension cooperative extension has been an invaluable resource getting information about crop safety and that water contamination . Then , when it comes to well safety , the local health department , I think , has been the best source of information for farmers , understanding how to treat or shock their wells after potential contamination . Those two things are what come to mind your potential contamination .
Speaker 2Those two things are what come to mind . Amazing . Well , we are so so you know lucky to have you guys on our show today to share all of these resources . So a huge , huge thank you to both of you , lisa and Jamie , for joining us and sharing really such valuable insights into the challenges and triumphs of disaster relief and resilience in the farming world .
Speaker 4Of course , thanks for having us . Thank you .
Speaker 2Your work at RAFI is a testament to the power of community support policy advocacy and sustainable farming practices and , as we've heard today , when farmers have access to the right tools and technology and resources , they're able to recover from crises and build even stronger , more resilient operations .
Supporting Sustainable Farming Initiatives
Speaker 2So , whether it's helping farmers conserve their land , expand their market access or create action plans in the face of disaster , organizations like RAFI USA are making a real difference . If you want to learn more about RAFI's programs and how you can support their mission , be sure to check out our show notes and remember , every time you support a small farm or advocate for sustainable practices , you're playing a part in building a more equitable food system . Thank you so much for listening and we'll see you next time on Fresh Take .
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