South Dakota Farmers Union President Doug Sombke took part with farmers and farm group leaders in the United Nation’s Year of Family Farming Conference held in Quebec, Canada.  Representatives from the United States, Canada and Mexico all talked about agriculture similarities between the countries and ways to become more sustainable.  Sombke says one of the ideas that met with great success at the conference is how beginning farmer programs are run in the United States.

Sombke says an idea that farmers in all three countries could embrace and that would help lead to more efficient and effective sustainability is using C-S-A-s or  Community Service Associations.

Sombke says the farmer who sold the produce in that instance would then have access to capital to help him run his farm.  He says they also talked about local, state, national and international policies and their impacts on farmers in the various countries as well as about issues relating to access to credit,, land and other factors of production.