Rep. Huffman visits Bayside farm to talk food policy with local farmers

BAYSIDE, Calif. — The North Coast's U.S. Representative Jared Huffman visited Humboldt County this morning to speak with local farmers and industry advocates about food policy.

"Local food is a big deal," Huffman said. "How we grow, distribute and consume our food is a big part of the economy. It can have huge impacts or benefits to the environment, and it's also part of this big climate challenge that we are grappling with."

Huffman's visit was hosted by Redwood Roots Farm and organized by the non-profit organization Locally Delicious. It featured conversations regarding food pricing on a local regionalized basis, healthy food incentives and how community-supported agriculture can get more attention from the federal government.

"I came here specifically because I wanted to hear what he had to say about local food systems and how that would fit into environmental stewardship, action and economics," Nicholas Pronsolino of Table Bluff Farm said. "I was really excited to hear today from him that he's got our back, that he's listening."

People also wanted to know how rural players can compete with larger conglomerates, and what the congressman could do about it.

"The ladies of Locally Delicious have been working hard to get a distribution center. That's huge," Pronsolino said. "That [Huffman] wants to step up for the small person, the small farmer, the disadvantaged farmer, speaks volumes in this day in age of backed industry and big ag[riculture] as we know it, and big organic as we know it."

"It seems to me that maybe the United States Dept. of Agriculture (USDA) is just not set up to think about this kind of local food and community-supported agriculture," Huffman said, responding to a question during the event.

The congressman also said he's concerned that farms in this part of the state struggle to secure grant funding. He said he wants to do more in order to change that.

Huffman says that these visits, talking to the people on the front lines of the issues, is so important to shaping sound, effective policy.

"These issues can be abstract if you stay in Washington, or just sit in your office and read about these things," Huffman said. "When you actually hear from the people who are growing the food, that are running the food banks, that are part of these collaboratives and partnerships to try to really re-imagine the entire local food system."

"Local chicken, a half-pound of chicken, costs you $45 to receive from me in LA," Pronsolino said. "We can do better than that, and I think that Huffman has come here with an ear to hear ways. He has the power to put pressure on folks."