Take Action — Let’s Create a Fairer Food System!

THE RIGHT TO KNOW WHAT’S IN OUR FOOD: As part of the food integrity community, we know you value the right to know how your food is grown and what’s going in it. America’s farmers want the same thing. Let USDA know you appreciate their efforts to make companies disclose what’s going onto America’s farms and your dinner plate.

END EXPLOITATIVE CONTRACTS: The #FairShake campaign asked that farmers get a fair deal when it comes to the contracts they sign. Many farmers are deceived about what they stand to lose by entering these “take or leave it deals” and end up getting heavily in debt. That means bankruptcy for many farmers which in turn decimates rural communities. We need the proposed rules to put an end to this exploitative contracting.

RESET THE BALANCE OF POWER: FIC supporters know and understand that it’s the people, not the corporations, who are feeding the world. We need to reset the balance of power between corporate behemoths and the working people. That starts by making sure that common sense rules like these give farmers basic business disclosure information to make decisions about the future of their farms.

FIX THE RIGGED SYSTEM: Poultry companies pit farmers against each other in a rigged system called the “tournament.” The winner of the tournament is paid from the earnings of the lowest performer. If anyone complains about the system, the poultry companies are notorious for retaliating. Farmers’ paychecks can vary by tens of thousands of dollars based on company-made mistakes, such as quality of the feed provided. Reforms like those in the new Packers and Stockyards Act Rule are needed because the current system unfairly shifts risk onto poultry growers.