NASDA News April 9, 2007

Lawmakers Plan Review of Pet Food Regulation
Published: April 09, 2007

Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) announced April 5 that the Senate will hold an oversight hearing on the regulatory mechanisms that govern the pet food industry and the ongoing investigation on the widespread recall of contaminated pet food. In March, Menu Foods, Inc., and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced a voluntary recall of 60 million cans and pouches of wet pet food. The recall involves 42 varieties of cat food and 53 varieties of dog food. The recall was recently expanded in late March to at least four more makers of pet food.
        
The hearing is expected to be held soon after the Senate returns to work from the Easter recess. Hearing witnesses will include FDA officials who will be questioned on the timeline of the investigation, the source of the contamination, and the agency's regulatory and inspection responsibilities. The hearing will also include outside experts who will discuss the current state of the pet food industry. Durbin is urging the FDA to take action in three specific areas. He wants to require the FDA to work with the states to establish a standardized set of regulations and inspection requirements. In addition, he wants to direct the FDA to create an information sharing system that would allow state veterinarians, pet owners, and others to alert the FDA of possible contaminations. Finally, Durbin wants companies that delay reporting to the FDA and endanger human and animal health to face penalties.
        
In the House, Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio) has started investigating the FDA's response to the massive pet food recall and may also conduct oversight hearings. Kucinich is chairman of the House Government Reform Subcommittee on Domestic Policy. He recently wrote a detailed and pointed letter to FDA asking as many as twenty specific questions about plant inspections and other topics. (Contact: Charlie Ingram and Blake Patton)

Florida's CFO Sink and Commissioner Bronson Announce "Conversations on Climate Change" Website
Published: April 09, 2007

The day before holding the first of four half-day "Conversations on Climate Change," Florida Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink and Florida Agriculture Commissioner Charles Bronson unveiled last week an official website for their Cabinet initiative. By logging onto http://www.floridaclimatechange.com, Floridians can learn about climate change, watch a web cast of Tuesday's workshop, and read about initiatives in other states.
        
"Conversations on Climate Change" is a series of four half-day Cabinet workshops that focus on climate change, how Florida's economy is affected by changes in climate, and the need to expand renewable energy sources.
        
"Climate change is a reality, and we need to learn as much as we can about the potential impact on our state's financial health," said Sink. "As a government official concerned about Florida's economy, I am focused on protecting the vitality of our financial and insurance markets."
        
Bronson launched Florida's "Farm to Fuel" program, which partners with "25x'25," the national bipartisan organization whose goal is to see U.S. agriculture produce 25 percent of the nation's energy needs by the year 2025. "It is my hope that these discussions will inform the people of Florida of the importance of renewable energy production in Florida," said Bronson. "With the amount of renewable energy sources in our state, we should strive to be a national leader in this emerging industry."
        
"Conversations on Climate Change" will begin Tuesday, April 3, 2007, at 11:00 a.m. after the Florida Cabinet meeting with "Climate Change: An Overview." Future workshops are scheduled after the June 12, September 18, and November 14, 2007, Florida Cabinet meetings. Each workshop will feature a new topic and national experts in areas such as: the science of rising sea levels, renewable energy sources, the impact of climate change on the insurance and financial industries, and more. The sessions will also give elected officials, business leaders and Floridians the opportunity to understand how these challenges and potential solutions present opportunities for the growth of new industries in Florida.
        
Special guest former New York Governor George Pataki, who made the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions a priority in his administration, is planning to participate in the June workshop with other experts. Pataki has been nationally recognized for his leadership on increasing awareness of climate change among the Northeastern states.
        
The workshop "Climate Change: An Overview" included the following discussions: 

• From the Tree Tops- A High-Level View of Our Climate: Margaret Lowman, Ph.D., Director of Environmental Initiatives, New College of Florida. 
• Florida's Future and the Science of Climate Change: Stephen Mulkey, Ph.D., Science Advisor, Century Commission for a Sustainable Florida.
• Florida's Beaches and Sea Level Rise: Stephen Leatherman, Ph.D., Director of the International Hurricane Research Center and Coastal Research Laboratory at Florida International University. 
• An Insurance Perspective on Climate Risk: Tim Wagner, Nebraska Insurance Commissioner and Director of the U.S. National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC). 
• Clean Energy Investments: Kenneth Locklin, Clean Energy Group. 
• International Relationship - Carbon and the UK: Keith Allan, British Consulate-General. 
• Farm to Fuel- Opportunity in Renewables: Mike Bowman, Farm to Fuel.

(Contact: Terence McElroy, 850/488-3022)

Governor Doyle Announces $40,000 Value Chain Grant to Packerland Whey Products
Published: April 09, 2007

Governor Jim Doyle announced recently that Packerland Whey Products, Inc., of Luxembourg, Wisc., received a $40,000 Value Chain Grant to assist with a new engineering process of converting whey permeate into ethanol. "Wisconsin's innovative dairy processors continue to lead the nation in finding ways to convert whey - what was once considered a waste product--into a valuable agricultural product. This grant is a prime example of why Wisconsin is a leader in bioenergy," Doyle said.
        
Grant funds will assist Packerland Whey Products with furthering their engineering of producing ethanol at its existing livestock feed production facility. Since March 2006, the company has researched the feasibility of ethanol production using lactose as a sugar source in conversion to alcohol.
        
The company expects to produce six million gallons of fuel ethanol per year.
        
The Value Chain Grant is administered by the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) through its Value Added Dairy Initiative. The program is funded with federal dollars with the leadership of Senator Herb Kohl and Rep. Dave Obey, and matched by in-kind contributions of agencies and organizations within Wisconsin's dairy sector.
        
The Grow Wisconsin Dairy Team is a joint venture between DATCP, the Wisconsin Department of Commerce, UW Center for Dairy Profitability, UW Extension and Wisconsin Technical Colleges.
        
To learn more, visit http://www.GrowWisconsinDairy.org or contact Jim Cisler at 608/224-5137. (Contact: Jeanne Carpenter, 608/224-5115)

NASDA Highlights Farm Bill Recommendations -- Conservation
Published: April 09, 2007

NASDA is presenting farm bill highlights each week in NASDA News as Congress gears up for consideration of the 2007 farm bill. NASDA's recommendations and a summary of highlights are posted on the NASDA website at http://www.nasda.org/fb2007. This week the highlights focus on conservation.
        
|NASDA calls for a bold, new initiative to address agriculture conservation and natural resource and environmental priorities through state partnership agreements. A new Agriculture Stewardship Partnership Agreement would be a "block grant" type initiative that would give state and local government greater flexibility, innovative tools, and resources to implement agricultural conservation priorities. Under Agriculture Stewardship Partnership Agreements, USDA would provide grants to states as a means to provide assistance and support, cost-share payments, incentive payments, technical assistance, and education to agricultural producers and landowners for environmental enhancements, best management practices, and air and water quality improvements for addressing resource concerns.
        
The state departments of agriculture or a collaboration of state agencies would administer the program. States would have maximum flexibility to: (1) address threats to soil, air, water, and related natural resources; (2) comply with state and federal environmental laws; (3) make beneficial, cost-effective changes to cropping systems, grazing management, manure, nutrient, pest, or irrigation management, or other measures needed to conserve and improve soil, water and other natural resources; and (4) target statewide conservation efforts to address environmental threats.
        
NASDA's 2007 Farm Bill Recommendations also call for enhancing the Farm and Ranch Lands Preservation Program (FRPP) by establishing additional flexibility, resources and local control. NASDA believes the FRPP should not exclusively focus on soils preservation, but should incorporate farm viability into its overall mission. NASDA recommends enhancing the effectiveness of FRPP through the following specific proposals: (1) amend the statutory purpose of FRPP to protect land with prime, unique or other productive soils that are at risk of non-farm development; and (2) expand the definition of eligible land to include "cropland, rangeland, grassland, pasture land, and forest land that is an incidental part of the agricultural operation." (Contact: Charlie Ingram)

USDA Outlines 2007 Farm Bill Proposals for Rural
Published: April 09, 2007

Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns on April 5 outlined details of several proposed 2007 farm bill changes that will streamline USDA's Rural Development programs and expand funding for rural health care and community facilities.
        
USDA is proposing funding to support a $1.6 billion loan program to help rehabilitate as well as update facilities and equipment at Rural Critical Access Hospitals. There are more than 1,200 such hospitals located in rural areas. In addition, the administration proposes infusing an additional $500 million to reduce the backlog of applications for rural development water and waste disposal grants and loans, emergency community water assistance grants, community facilities loan and grant programs that assist rural first responders, broadband access loans, and distance learning and telemedicine grants.
        
USDA also proposes consolidating several rural development legislative authorities to increase flexibility and efficiency. Currently, approximately 45 programs are operated under the rural development umbrella. These programs utilize one of three funding mechanisms including grants, loans and loan guarantees. USDA proposes grouping statutory authorities to reflect the customers that either directly benefit from the programs or are essential to their operation. Details on the USDA proposal for rural development are available at http://www.usda.gov/farmbill. (Contact: Charlie Ingram)