[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 151 (Friday, October 5, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2076]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  IN HONOR OF THE CENTER FOR AGROECOLOGY AND SUSTAINABLE FOOD SYSTEMS

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. SAM FARR

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, October 4, 2007

  Mr. FARR. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor one of the most 
prominent centers of agricultural research and education in the world 
on the occasion of its 40th anniversary. The Center for Agroecology & 
Sustainable Food Systems, CASFS, located on the campus of the 
University of California at Santa Cruz, enjoys a reputation as the 
Harvard of organic farming.
  While this reputation is well deserved, it did not come easily to the 
UCSC Farm, as CASFS is more commonly known. The program began life in 
1967 as an obscure 4-acre organic garden tucked away in a disused and 
unnoticed corner of the UCSC campus. It was birthed by master gardener 
Alan Chadwick who inspired a group of students to convert a dry 
hillside into a magnificent terraced garden that incorporated the 
latest techniques in chemical free horticulture and reflected the back 
to the land Zeitgeist of the day. In 1972, the project expanded onto 
another unused campus site where garden participants began a 17 acre, 
later 25 acre, experimental organic farm. There they set out explore 
ways of improving and applying organic farming techniques. Throughout 
the 1970s, the little UCSC Farm community quietly grew with a mixture 
of a little campus support, some creative grant writing, and the sales 
of its farm produce. A steady stream of student apprentices advanced 
through constantly evolving program. By the 1980s, the UCSC Farm had 
come to a crossroads. Could it reach beyond the little world of the 
UCSC campus and help shape the broader world of agriculture?
  While the UCSC campus family welcomed the project, the broader UC 
system didn't know what to do with it. It didn't have any formal 
accreditation and it was not located on one of the UC land grant 
institutions where agriculture was supposed to happen. It simply lacked 
the necessary pedigree to secure an official and funded place within 
the University of California system. As the State assembly member 
representing the Monterey Bay Area during the 1980s, I had the honor of 
securing a line for the UCSC farm in the State's higher education 
budget. In 1990, I authored the California Organic Standards Act, which 
was largely shaped by work at the UCSC Farm and the Santa Cruz 
community of organic growers that had grown up in its neighborhood.
  Since entering Congress, I have worked hard to share the story of the 
UCSC Farm's important work with my colleagues. Congress has responded 
with a total of over $3 million in direct appropriations to the UCSC 
Farm since 2000 to assist with its important research and extension 
work with the rapidly expanding organic farming sector. Indeed, the 
UCSC Farm's influence has been far reaching, inspiring may sustainable 
agriculture programs at other universities, including UC Davis, Cal 
Poly, and USDA's Agricultural Research Service.
  Madam Speaker, it is with great pleasure that I pass on the 
congratulations of the House to all the people who have worked so hard 
over the course of the past 40 years to make the UCSC Farm such a great 
success.

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