When Small Farmers Go to Washington
Most small farmers never get a seat at the table in Washington. We have made three trips to the nation's capital to do what farmers do best — tell the truth about what life looks like on the ground in rural Alabama, and push for the people and programs that matter most to our communities.
All three trips were made possible through our partnership with Bread for the World, a non-profit organization working to end hunger in the US and around the world. Their advocacy work connects farmers, faith communities, and legislators around the shared goal of food security. We are grateful for that partnership and for the doors it has opened.
Trip One: Advocating for GusNIP
Our first trip to DC was focused on the Gus Schumacher Nutrition Incentive Program (GusNIP), a federal initiative that doubles the purchasing power of SNAP recipients when they buy fresh, locally-grown fruits and vegetables. For small farms like ours operating in USDA-designated food deserts, GusNIP is a direct lifeline connecting our harvests to families in the community who need them most.
We met with the offices of our Alabama congressional delegation including Katie Boyd Britt, Barry Moore, Shomari Figures, and Tommy Tuberville. We brought the real stories of rural Alabama — the diet-related health crises, the food access gaps, the small farmers who want to serve their communities but need functioning market structures to do it. Those stories don't often make it into those rooms. We made sure they did.
Trip Two: Defending SNAP and GusNIP
Our second trip came as SNAP benefits faced serious proposed cuts that would have stripped food assistance from millions of low-income Americans, including many in rural Alabama. We went back to Congress to make the case again. SNAP is not just a nutrition program. It is an economic engine for small farms and local food systems. When SNAP participants can afford to buy fresh produce at local farmers markets, small farmers win. When SNAP is cut, rural communities pay the price twice — at the kitchen table and at the farm gate.
We again pushed for GusNIP's continued funding and for reform of the matching fund requirements that make it nearly impossible for under-resourced rural organizations to participate. In persistent poverty counties like Crenshaw County, a dollar-for-dollar match requirement is not a barrier. It is a wall.
Trip Three: Keeping the Conversation Going
We are heading back to Washington in June 2026 for our third trip. The Farm Bill conversation is still moving, SNAP is still under pressure, and the voices of small farmers in rural Alabama still need to be in the room. We will again be meeting with the offices of Barry Moore, Shomari Figures, and Katie Britt to make that case.
Why This Work Matters
When two farmers from Opp, Alabama walk into a Senate office and speak plainly about what food insecurity looks like in Crenshaw County — the diabetes rates, the empty produce sections, the families choosing between utilities and vegetables — something moves. Policy is made by people, and people respond to plain truth.
We believe small farmers have a responsibility to use whatever platform they are given to speak up for their communities, their land, and the food systems that sustain both. Going to Washington is not glamorous. It is work, the same kind we do every day on the farm. But it matters, and we will keep going back.
Follow along at #lolleylobbyist and #mayimfarm.