California Roundtable on Ag and the Environment
The California Roundtable on Ag and the Environment (CRAE) is a broad coalition of agriculture, environment, labor, and public agency leaders working to promote an agriculture that is economically viable, environmentally sustainable and socially responsible.
CRAE was founded in September 2004 to build broad-based support for the expansion of the Environmental Quality Improvement Program in the Federal Farm Bill. Since that time, the group has expanded its efforts to include a broader array of strategic issues at the intersection of agriculture and the environment. New topics for CRAE in 2009 were improving coordination of regulations to facilitate on-farm conservation and restoration, and developing recommendations for state agencies on implementing AgVision 2030. In addition, CRAE has been working on a range of key issues, including:
- The improved coordination of environmental regulations for agriculture
- Exploring the role of agriculture in climate change mitigation and adaptation
- Promoting Farm Bill reform
- Working with the University of California to address the research needs of agriculture and the environment
- Exploring ways to use third-party certification of farms as a way to improve environmental performance and create regulatory incentives on farms
- Developing a proactive response to food safety issues that protects health and the environment
- Preserving agricultural land in California
- Supporting AgJobs legislation and the resolution of ag labor issues
- Protecting agricultural production and environmental resources from invasive pests
CRAE works primarily at the policy level, providing information and perspective to state and federal legislators and regulators.
Follow the links to the left to learn more about our work and successes.
CRAE’s Mission
The California Roundtable on Agriculture and the Environment (CRAE) is an alliance of agricultural, environmental, labor, and public agency leaders seeking to promote an agriculture that is economically viable, environmentally sustainable and socially responsible. Roundtable participants strive to learn from each other about agricultural, environmental, labor and regulatory issues, identify common interests and advocate in support of the group’s common goals and principles.
By “economically viable,” we mean agriculture that is profitable and long-lasting.
By “environmentally sustainable” we mean the production, processing, transport, and consumption of agricultural products in such a way that conserves natural resources and protects human and ecosystem health.
By “socially responsible,” we mean contributing to the needs of the community, including farm families and employees, protecting consumer and worker health and safety, and supporting state, regional and local agriculture in the marketplace.
We believe that agricultural producers, consumers, policymakers and public interest organizations must all play a critical role in achieving these objectives.
CRAE testifies before Cannella Panel
Nov. 2011 The newly re-formed Cannella Environmental Farming Act Science Advisory Panel held their inaugural meeting on November 7, 2011, with the main focus being ecosystem services. CRAE partner Casey Walsh Cady, with the California Department of Food and Agriculture, provided the Panel with an update on the Roundtable’s efforts on the subject, which include identifying key elements of ecosystem services frameworks, compiling a list of pilot projects in California, and building a strategy for creating an enabling policy environment for growing ecosystem services markets in California.