§ 130c.2. Definitions.
The following words and terms, when used in this chapter, have the following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:
Act—The Sustainable Agriculture Act (3 P. S. § § 2101—2117).
Agricultural activity or farming—The commercial production of agricultural crops, livestock or livestock products, poultry products, milk or dairy products or fruits and other horticultural products.
Alternative crop—Crops not normally grown on an annual or rotational basis in this Commonwealth. The term may include crops used to replenish soil nutrients, crops used for animal or human consumption or crops used to reduce reliance on fuel, agricultural chemicals or synthetic fertilizer.
Applicant—A farm enterprise applying for a loan or grant.
Beneficial insects—Insects which, during their life cycle, are effective pollinators of plants, are parasites or predators of pests, or are otherwise beneficial to farming.
Board—The Board of Sustainable Agriculture.
Corporate farm—A corporation formed for the purpose of engaging in agricultural activity or farming which is not a family farm corporation.
Creditworthy—The ability to pay debts as they become due, to offer sufficient security and collateral and having no history of any previous default on loans specified in § 130c.14(g) (relating to general conditions).
Defoliant—A substance or mixture of substances intended for causing the leaves or foliage to drop from a plant, with or without causing abscission.
Department—The Department of Agriculture of the Commonwealth.
Desiccant—Any substance or mixture of substances intended for artificially accelerating the drying of plant tissue.
Executive Director—The person appointed by the Secretary to advise the Board.
Family farm corporation—A corporation formed for the purpose of farming in which the majority of the voting stock is held by and the majority of the stockholders are natural persons or their spouses or other persons related to the natural persons or their spouses and at least one of the majority stockholders is residing on or actively operating or managing the farm and none of the stockholders of which are corporations.
Family farm partnership—A general partnership entered into for the purpose of farming, having no more than three unrelated members and having at least one member residing on or actively operating or managing the farm.
Farm enterprise—A natural person, family farm corporation, family farm partnership engaged in farming or a corporate farm or nonprofit educational institution.
Farmland—Land in this Commonwealth that is capable of supporting the commercial production of agricultural crops, livestock or livestock products, poultry products, milk or dairy products, fruit or other horticultural products.
Fund—A fund created by section 7 of the act (3 P. S. § 2107) and established by the Department which shall receive all revenues and appropriations, allowed under the act. The Fund shall pay all costs, except administrative expenses, related to the Program. The Funds shall also contain the revolving loan account created by section 9 of the act (3 P. S. § 2109).
Individual—A natural person, meaning a single person as distinguished from a group or class, and as distinguished from a partnership, corporation or association.
Nonprofit educational institution—A State-owned or State-related college or university in this Commonwealth or a nonprofit organization, association or group in this Commonwealth which:(i) Has demonstrated a capacity to conduct agricultural research or education programs.
(ii) Has experience in research or education in sustainable agricultural practices.
(iii) Qualifies as a nonprofit organization under section 501(c) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (26 U.S.C.A. § 501(c)).
Pest—An insect, rodent, nematode, fungus, weed or any other form of terrestrial or aquatic plant or animal life or virus, bacteria or other microorganism (except viruses, bacteria, or other microorganisms on or in living man or other living animals) which the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency declares to be a pest under section 25(c)(1) of the Federal, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act of 1947 (7 U.S.C.A. § 136w(1)).
Pesticide—An insecticide or herbicide having the following characteristics:(i) A substance or mixture of substances intended for preventing, destroying, repelling or mitigating a pest.
(ii) A substance or mixture of substances intended for use as a plant regulator, defoliant or desiccant.
Plant regulator—A substance or mixture of substances intended, through physiological action, for accelerating or altering the behavior of plants or the produce thereof. The term does not include substances to the extent that they are intended as plant soil amendments. The term does not include nutrient mixtures or soil amendments that are commonly known as vitamin-hormone horticultural products, intended for improvement, maintenance, survival, health, and propagation of plants, and as are not for pest destruction and are nontoxic, nonpoisonous in the undiluted packaged concentration.
Program—The Sustainable Agriculture Loan or Grant Program or the Alternative Crop Grant Program.
Project—A specific plan set forth on a loan or grant application submitted under the act and this chapter, describing sustainable agriculture or alternative crop practices to be implemented using loan or grant funds received under that application.
Secretary—The Secretary of Agriculture of the Commonwealth or a designee.
Sustainable agriculture—An integrated system of plant and animal production practices having a site-specific application that will over the long term:(i) Satisfy human food and fiber needs.
(ii) Enhance environmental quality and the natural resource base upon which the agricultural economy depends.
(iii) Make the most efficient use of nonrenewable resources and on-farm resources and integrate, where appropriate, natural biological cycles and controls.
(iv) Sustain the economic viability of farm operations.
(v) Enhance the quality of life for farmers and society as a whole.
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