Listen to a June 6, 2012, podcast about the importance of food stamps to the farm bill from American Public Media’s Marketplace.

See The New York Times’ Times Topics page on the farm bill.

The National Agricultural Law Center website includes a resource page on previous farm bills; it also includes some information about the 2012 bill. The law center also posts links to Congressional Research Service reports on the bill.

The USDA also posts information about the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program online. An April 2012 USDA report says one in seven Americans relies on food stamps; see Page 4 of the report for some historical perspective.

Find data about farming, including specifics for your area, on the Census of Agriculture website, which is maintained by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

The National Farmers Union works to shape agricultural policy and educate rural leaders, farmers, and ranchers. Its website includes a link to state groups.

The American Soybean Association works to develop and implement agricultural policy. Its website lists state association presidents and state associate affiliate offices.

The American Farm Bureau Federation is the “national voice of agriculture.” It advocates for agricultural communities, farmers, and ranchers. Its website provides links to state farm bureaus.

Michael Pollan is Knight Professor of Journalism at University of California, Berkeley, where he directs the Knight Program in Science and Environmental Journalism. His books include The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals. Read an Oct. 9, 2008, column on farm policy that he wrote for The New York Times.