CAFF has been a driving force in the sustainable agriculture movement for more than 30 years. We care about California’s farmers, food, and communities, and promote sustainable agriculture through our four programs.
Biological Agriculture pursues innovative soil and pest management initiatives, promoting sustainable and profitable practices that protect the community, the environment and the livelihood of the family farmer. We meet farmers where they are in terms of their growing practices and help them transition to sustainable models.
Our Farm to School Initiative develops and coordinates on-the-ground programs connecting schools and schoolchildren to their local farming communities, while also working on policies that help further the Farm to School movement in California. We work hand and hand with school Food Service, farmers, and the produce industry to bring more local fruits and vegetables onto school menus, helping to strengthen local farm economies and connect kids to where their food comes from.
Local Food Systems reconnects communities with the farmers who grow their food. The program reaches hundreds of thousands of California eaters each year through its Buy Fresh Buy Local educational and marketing materials, including the regional editions of Eater’s Guide to Local Food. In 2009, our local distribution entity, Growers Collaborative, evolved to its next phase: community aggregation hubs where established distributors can purchase value-added, locally branded produce from family farmers. We have established our first Aggregation Hub in Northern California and plan to have three more functional by the end of 2010.
The Policy program reinforces the work of our three on-the-ground programs by advocating for the rights of the family farmer to farm sustainably and profitably. Through our legislative work we address pressing issues including food safety regulations, land use and healthy school food. As a founding member of the California Climate and Agriculture Network (CalCAN), the California Agricultural Water Stewardship Initiative (CAWSI) and the California Roundtable on Agriculture and the Environment (CRAE), CAFF is swiftly responding to the emerging issues facing family farmers.