Willie Nelson, Farm Aid president, sent an open letter to our new President-elect, Barack Obama, to seek governmental support of the Farm Aid Good Food Movement. The Good Food Movement raises awareness about the benefits of food grown on family farms.Nelson said that the project “has grown and thrived almost entirely without the support of the federal government; however, now is the right moment for the leadership of our country to take a role in this important movement. In fact, the future of our economy, our environment and our health demand it. Now is the time for our country to recognize and call on family farmers’ ingenuity, strength and value to our past and our future. All of these start with family farmers.” Nelson also added, “I look forward to working with you and make this vision of a family farm system of agriculture a reality.”Nelson started the Farm Aid cause in 1985 after many family farmers were forced to move off of their land because of a federal policy that emphasized industrial agriculture. Many independent family farmers were replaced by factory farms. Nelson feels that the industrial agriculture has “wreaked havoc on our communities, our environment, and our public health."
