2007 Press Releases
Grant helps Farm Aid to support U.S. organic cotton farmers
For immediate release
OTA Contact: Barbara Haumann (413-774-7511, Ext. 20; bhaumann@ota.com)
Farm Aid Contact: Wendy Matusovich (617-354-2922; wendy@farmaid.org)
RANDALL's ISLAND, New York (Sept. 9, 2007): The Organic Trade Association (OTA), through the generosity of the Martin Fabert Foundation of Seattle, WA, is supporting Farm Aid as it transitions its promotional t-shirts from conventional to organic cotton for the third year in a row.
For the past three years, the Martin Fabert Foundation has provided funds to the Organic Fiber Transition Project implemented by OTA to encourage non-profit organizations to purchase organic cotton t-shirts in lieu of conventionally grown cotton t-shirts for fundraising and promotional programs. The grant is designed to help non-profits cover the differences in cost between organic and conventional cotton t-shirts without taking a financial risk.
Last year, Farm Aid received $21,500 to produce 13,250 t-shirts. For this year's Farm Aid 2007: A HOMEGROWN FESTIVAL, Farm Aid has received $17,000 from the program to produce 13,000 organic t-shirts made from U.S.-grown cotton.
"Farm Aid is one of the leaders in this effort to use organic cotton, which, at the same time, increases U.S. organic cotton production and continues to improve our environment. OTA is so pleased that Martin Fabert Foundation has chosen to build access to organic cotton and help grow the domestic market for organic cotton farmers," said Caren Wilcox, OTA's Executive Director. "Over the three years Farm Aid has participated in this program, it has supported U.S. organic cotton farmers by producing a total of 37,250 organic t-shirts."
"We are thankful for the generosity of OTA in supporting our merchandising of t-shirts at the Farm Aid concert and on our web site. We are proud to have high-quality organic cotton t-shirts, thanks to the OTA grant," said Wendy Matusovich, Farm Aid's Development Director.
The Organic Trade Association (OTA) is the membership-based business association for organic agriculture and products in North America. Its 1,600 members include growers, shippers, processors, certifiers, farmers' associations, distributors, importers, exporters, consultants, retailers and others. OTA's mission is to promote and protect the growth of organic trade to benefit the environment, farmers, the public and the economy. For further information, visit OTA's web site at www.ota.com.
Farm Aid's mission is to build a vibrant family-farm centered system of agriculture in America. Farm Aid artists and board members Willie Nelson, Neil Young, John Mellencamp and Dave Matthews host an annual concert to raise funds to support Farm Aid's work with family farmers and to inspire people to choose family-farmed food. Since 1985, Farm Aid has raised more than $30 million to support programs that help farmers thrive, expand the reach of the Good Food Movement, take action to change the current system of industrial agriculture and promote food from family farms.
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