In January, Neighboring Food Co-op Association Executive Director Erbin Crowell was invited to testify before a Senate Committee on “Growing the Small Business Agricultural Economy,” and how changes to Federal policy can support co-operative growth and impact.
Crowell, who also serves on the Board of Directors of the National Cooperative Business Association (NCBA) and the New England Farmers Union, was invited by Senator Edward J. Markey (D-MA) to offer testimony before the U.S. Senate Committee on Small Business & Entrepreneurship on January 14 in Washington, DC. His remarks centered on how co-operatives are a proven business model for supporting local producers, creating stable jobs, and strengthening rural economies — and how basic changes to Small Business Administration (SBA) policies, such as those included in Main Street Employee Ownership 2.0 Act of 2024 (H.R. 10242) and the Improving SBA Engagement on Employee Ownership Act (H.R. 10244), would enable them to grow.
“Co-ops offer a time-tested, successful, and impactful tool for addressing the challenges and opportunities of economic change and instability,” said Crowell. “There is potential to leverage their proven track record and enable people in rural communities to improve access to goods and services, create good local jobs, and grow the small business agricultural economy.”
As we work to continue to build stronger relationships among co-operators in our region, we are particularly excited to have welcomed Chatham Real Food Co-op (NY), Rising Tide Co-op (ME), Tip Top Co-op (MA), and Tom’s Natural Foods Co-op (NY) into our association in last year.
Ranking Member Senator Markey also emphasized the harm caused by President Trump’s attacks on rural economies and agriculture small businesses and the rising health care and energy costs they face, as well as increased costs from tariffs, stressing the need for reforms in government food programs to support small and underserved food producers through meaningful legislation, such as his EFFECTIVE Food Procurement Act.
“Food is more than what we see on our plate—it is the labor of farmers and farm workers, the health of our environment, and the cornerstone of growth for many rural economies,” said Senator Markey. “President Trump’s policies are creating higher costs and worsening the long-standing problems that small businesses in rural communities have faced. Small businesses in rural America were already struggling with climate change impacts, rising housing costs, retaining workers, and finding a path forward for their small business when they decide to retire. We must address these issues by ensuring that small businesses are prioritized in federal programs—this includes our farmers, fishers, and ranchers in rural America and across Central and Western Massachusetts—not make it harder for them to exist.”
Crowell provided examples of food co-ops and their impact for local farmers and consumers, as well as the challenges they have faced recently due to the federal government shutdown and drastic reductions in food security initiatives such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).
“Cuts to programs like SNAP have a deep impact on food security, particularly in rural areas,” added Crowell. “People with limited incomes have less money to spend on healthy food and groceries, which also means sales go down for food co-ops and local farmers. When we think about how these benefits impact not just individuals and families on limited incomes, we have to understand that they are part of a more sustainable and fair food system that can keep people well-fed and healthy.”
Maria Moreira, Founder and Board President of World Farmers in Lancaster, MA, provided testimony on the challenges facing small producers. “Our farmers are aging, our shifting climate is imposing increasing threats to farmers’ operations, our farmers’ labor force is changing and uncertain, our land prices continue to sky-rocket, and the farmers continue to make pennies on the dollar for their products,” she said. “Because of the cancellation of the Local Food Program Assistance in March, 500 farmers in Massachusetts and New England did the best they could, but crops were left in the field, unsold.”
Crowell emphasized that legislation such as the Main Street Employee Ownership 2.0 Act of 2024 (H.R. 10242) and the Improving SBA Engagement on Employee Ownership Act (H.R. 10244), would enable co-ops to grow by improving access to SBA lending, providing education on co-operative enterprise, and ensuring cross-agency collaboration and technical assistance for co-ops.
General Managers: Click Here to Sign up your Food Co-op as a supporter of this legislation.
Co-op Members: Write to your Representative and Senators and encourage them to support the Main Street Employee Ownership 2.0 Act (H.R. 10242) and the Improving SBA Engagement on Employee Ownership Act (H.R. 10244).
Sample Language
Dear Representative/Senator XX,
I am writing on behalf of / as a member of [co-op name] to respectfully request your support for the Main Street Employee Ownership 2.0 Act which would allow co-operatives to access SBA financing programs. [Add information about your co-op].
Currently, our co-op cannot access due to SBA lending requirements that do not align with our shared community ownership structure. The bill would help our co-op to access much needed financing [include potential positive impacts of getting access to funds for startup, expansion, or working capital].
If you or your team have any questions, we’d be happy to answer them or connect you with the Neighboring Food Co-op Association and National Cooperative Business Association.
Thank you for your consideration.
Working together and in partnership with organizations such as NCBA CLUSA, the New England Farmers Union, and CoBank, the NFCA is advocating for better food, farm, and co-operative policy. For more information, please visit https://nfca.coop/policy.