They might be from rural America, but in just a couple of weeks, the grassroots activists of the National Farmers Union (NFU) will make their way to the big city of Washington, D.C., for their annual fly-in, Sept. 15-18, 2015. This news release from the group says their enthusiasm and willingness to fight for better public policies for family farmers and ranchers are a long-time tradition for the members of the NFU.
“For generations, Farmers Union activists have come from across the land by bus, plane, automobile or train to bring the issues affecting the nation’s farm families directly to their members of Congress,” said [NFU President Roger] Johnson. “Some of the participants have made several dozen trips to the nation’s capital over the years.”
Johnson pointed out that the event is now called “fly-in,” but the name has changed over the years to reflect the predominant form of transportation used at the time. Regardless the mode of transportation used, the event has proven to be a very effective way to help hold policymakers’ feet to the fire on important issues to rural America. Last year, more than 250 Farmers Union members participated in the fall fly-In, meeting with their elected representatives, as well as important U.S. Department of Agriculture and other administration officials.
“Farmers Union is truly a grass-roots organization that has been driven by its voting members for well over a century,” said Johnson. “We form our national policies through the participation of family farmer and rancher delegates at our national convention, and then many of them come to Washington to bring those ideas to fruition, ” he noted.
Some of the hot button issues expected to be discussed include Country-of-Origin Labeling (COOL), the Renewable Fuel Standard, and international trade.