Source: Sustainable Food News

Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage, Inc. (NGVC) said Tuesday it is sponsoring a fundraiser for the Organic Farmers Association (OFA), a new national group advocating for U.S. organic farmers and ranchers on Capitol Hill.

Lakewood, Colo.-based NGVC (NYSE:NGVC), operating 140 stores in 19 states, said the goal is to raise $100,000 for OFA during September.

The OFA was launched in September 2016 by organic agriculture research group, Rodale Institute, which said with American consumers spending about $47 billion annually on organics, the nation's organic farmers need a place at the table to advocate for national policies that will enable them to meet growing demand.

"There are only about 17,000 certified organic farms in the United States, compared to the more than two million conventional farms," said Heather Isely, NGVC's executive vice president. "The [OFA] supports the organic farmer by elevating their influence on issues that matter to them. Better policy means more opportunities to increase organic acreage and improve the economic viability of organic farming methods, which makes organic farming a more attractive option."

In related news, Kemper Isely, NGVC's chairman and co-president, was featured in a Bloomberg News video Tuesday (see video below) commenting on price cuts announced at Whole Foods Market stores by its new owner Amazon.com, Inc.

NGVC's stock has been hammered this year by investors, and the recent acquisition of Whole Foods and price cuts at the world's largest organic and natural grocery chain is not helping.

NGVC's stock closed Tuesday at $5.88, down 32 percent in the past month. The stock plunged to an all-time low of $5.50 on Aug. 4 after the organic and natural grocery chain reported disappointing third quarter sales and earnings.