NASDA News - January 26, 2010

THIS WEEK IN WASHINGTON: STATE OF THE UNION, DISCRETIONARY SPENDING FREEZE
Published: January 26, 2010

President Obama will deliver his State of the Union address to Congress Wednesday night in which he is expected to outline a proposal to freeze domestic discretionary spending for three years.  Early reports on the president’s proposal indicate the plan would save approximately $15 billion a year and could result in significant cuts for some programs, while others would see increased funding.  

The Senate will continue to consider legislation that would increase the statutory debt limit to $14.294 trillion.  Senators are also expected this week to vote on an amendment that would create a deficit reduction commission.  The House will vote on a number of minor bills this week and will end its work for the week prior to the president’s address to Congress.  Congressional Democrats continue to strategize a path forward on potential job-creation legislation, as well as healthcare.  (Contact: Farm Policy Staff)

NEW LEGISLATIVE EFFORTS SEEK TO HALT EPA CLIMATE CHANGE EFFORTS
Published: January 26, 2010

On January 21 Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) introduced a resolution of disapproval to stop the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from continuing their efforts to regulate greenhouse gases under the Clean Air Act.  With nearly all Republican Senators signing on as cosponsors, Sen. Murkowski also found three critical Democrats to join on the resolution.  Senate Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee Chairman Blanche Lincoln (D-AR), who is currently engulfed in a tough reelection campaign, Sen. Ben Nelson (D-NE) and Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA) are the Democratic Senators to sign on.  With the resolution of disapproval ultimately having to be signed by the President, the realities of it becoming law are extremely slim.  Nevertheless, President Barack Obama has said he supported attacking climate change through the legislative process, not through regulation.  Similar efforts to prohibit further action by the EPA are underway in the House of Representatives, as Rep. Earl Pomeroy (D-ND) introduced the Save Our Energy Jobs Act (H.R. 4396) earlier this year.  

Meanwhile, following the findings of a report produced by Informa Economics, the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) is now officially opposed to the climate change legislation passed by the House of Representatives last year.  Prior to last week’s announcement, the NCGA has been ‘neutral’ on the bill.  (Contact: David Hickey

NEARLY $310 MILLION AWARDED TO EXPAND BROADBAND ACCESS IN RURAL COMMUNITIES
Published: January 26, 2010

On Jan. 25, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced the recipients of nearly $310 million for rural broadband projects.  Funded by last year's American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (the Recovery Act), these monies will focus on middle mile and last mile projects. In total, the Recovery Act will provide USDA's Rural Utility Service with $2.5 billion to vastly improve broadband access in rural America.  For a complete list of the recently announced recipients, please visit the USDA’s website. For an update on Recovery Act activities by USDA, please visit www.usda.gov/recovery. (Contact: David Hickey)

AG SECRETARY VILSACK ANNOUNCES MILLIONS TO PROMOTE US FOOD & AG EXPORTS
Published: January 26, 2010

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced the allocation of $234.5 million to 70 U.S. trade organizations to help promote American food and agricultural products overseas.

The funding announced today was allocated under the Market Access Program (MAP) and the Foreign Market Development (FMD) Cooperator Program, both administered by USDA's Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS).

MAP uses funds from USDA's Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) to share the costs of overseas market development and promotional activities with U.S. nonprofit agricultural trade organizations, state regional trade groups, and cooperatives. Activities conducted with MAP funding include market research, consumer promotions for retail products, technical capacity building, and seminars to educate overseas customers.

Under the FMD program, USDA's CCC establishes a partnership with nonprofit U.S. agricultural trade organizations. Funding priority is given to organizations that represent an entire industry or are nationwide in membership and scope. Program activities focus on reducing market impediments, improving the processing capabilities of importers, modifying restrictive regulatory codes and standards in foreign markets, and identifying new markets or uses for U.S. products.

For more information about FAS's market development programs, contact the Office of Trade Programs.   (By: Brett Schubert; Contact:  Amy Mann)

REPORT DETAILS IMPACT BIOFUELS PRODUCTION COULD HAVE ON CHESAPEAKE BAY
Published: January 26, 2010

A report issued last week by the Chesapeake Bay Commission and the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture detailed the impact increased farming of feedstocks for biofuels could have on water quality in the Chesapeake Bay. 

The report states that harvesting winter cover crops and perennial grasses like barley, rye, and switchgrass on unused fields can absorb excess fertilizer and carbon dioxide. These crops, along with fast-growing trees, such as poplar and willow, can control erosion and potentially supply 18,000 jobs and 500 million gallons of biofuel.

The report recommends “setting regional and state production goals, developing harvest guidelines, avoiding the introduction of invasive species and creating a regional council for bioenergy development” to aid in developing the new sector.

However, according to authors of the report, the new biofuel industry would not be cost-competitive at first, so processors would need to be enticed by the government before farmers would be willing to supply biofuel feedstock.

The Chesapeake Bay Commission is a tri-state legislative commission created to advise the members of the General Assemblies of Maryland, Virginia, and Pennsylvania on matters of Bay-wide concern.  (By: Julie Adams; Contact: Nathan Bowen)

AG GROUPS UNITE IN SUPPORT OF ATRAZINE
Published: January 26, 2010

Earlier this month, 53 commodity groups and producers from around the U.S. joined to express their concern on the re-evaluation of the widely used herbicide atrazine in a letter to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lisa Jackson. In the letter the groups write that they are “troubled by the activist forces that seem to be guiding the very intensive and urgent re-evaluation (actually a re-re-evaluation) of atrazine despite its recently completed re-registration, which provided for its continued safe use.”

This letter was in response to a coalition of environmental activists who voiced their opinion in a letter to the EPA as well, stating they have “strong concerns about the safety of the herbicide.” Included in the letter, the activists called for a review that sets a standard for vetting the safety of agrichemicals.

Atrazine has been reviewed numerous times by the EPA, most recently in a 2006 re-registration review in which EPA approved atrazine for continued agricultural use and concluded that atrazine poses “no harm to the general U.S. population, infants, children or other major identifiable subgroups of consumers.”

Atrazine is used in more than 60 countries throughout the world, and for the past 50 years has been an essential tool for farmers of a variety of crops. The EPA estimates savings of $28 per acre in herbicide costs and yield advantages when atrazine is in use. The herbicide is also effective in conservation till or no-till systems and can help to reduce soil erosion by as much as 90 percent when compared to intensive tillage practices.

According to the Hudson Institute’s Dennis T. Avery and Alex Avery, if farmers lose the ability to use atrazine, “it will mean higher food costs, more soil erosion, less sustainable farming, and more environmental degradation. It’ll mean putting more of our farming eggs in fewer baskets.”  (By: Brett Schubert; Contact: Nathan Bowen)

MEMBERS OF CONGRESS URGE VILSACK TO MAINTAIN MAP FUNDING
Published: January 26, 2010

In a letter to U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, Congressmen Doc Hastings (R-WA) and Jim Costa (D-CA) and 64 other lawmakers announced a bipartisan congressional effort supporting the Market Access Program (MAP).   The letter outlined the importance of maintaining full funding for MAP in the Administration’s budget request that is set to be released on February 1.

MAP authorizes funding to support partial reimbursement to private companies for qualified overseas brand promotion of U.S. agricultural products.   MAP is a USDA program that provides matching grants to non-profit commodity organizations and broad-based agriculture groups to create and maintain overseas markets for U.S. agriculture products.  MAP funds are used for consumer promotion, market research and technical assistance. 

Authorized at $200 million per year, and funded at that level in recent years, MAP has a proven success record.  Participants in the MAP Branded program use their own money, leveraged with matching funds from the program, to develop export markets.  Unfortunately, MAP has also been a favorite target for budget cuts.  Last year the Obama Administration recommended a 20 percent cut to the program.  Such a cut would seriously undermine the ability of smaller companies and agriculture producer cooperatives to gain entry into targeted export markets and establish their branded products.  Furthermore, it would significantly impact jobs in rural communities.    (Contact: Amy Mann)

OBAMA NOMINATES HAGEN AS AG UNDERSECRETARY FOR FOOD SAFETY
Published: January 26, 2010

President Obama has nominated Elisabeth Hagen as the Agriculture Department’s undersecretary for food safety, an office that has been vacant since the start of the administration. As the USDA chief medical officer, Hagen currently serves as an adviser to the department on human health. Previous to this position, Hagen worked with the Agriculture Department’s Food Safety and Inspection Service. (By: Julie Adams; Contact: Bob Ehart)

KY: BEEKEEPING SCHOOLS OFFERED ACROSS KENTUCKY
Published: January 26, 2010

The Kentucky Department of Agriculture, the University of Kentucky Cooperative Extension Service and Kentucky State University are teaming up to offer beekeeping schools throughout the state.

Whether you are a veteran beekeeper or a beginner eager to get started, these day-long educational workshops, held on Saturdays, offer sessions on everything from where to buy equipment to tips on harvesting your first batch of honey.

 “Honey bees play an extremely important role in Kentucky agriculture as crop pollinators,” Agriculture Commissioner Richie Farmer said. “Up to one-third of the food we consume depends in some way on honey bees. That’s why the Kentucky Department of Agriculture is proud to support these beekeeping schools and see their numbers grow.”

There has been a steady increase in the number of beekeeping schools in the state and the number of Kentuckians attending them. Kentucky State Apiarist Phil Craft estimated that 800 people attended the schools last year.

The series of beekeeping schools kicks off Jan. 23 with the Eastern Kentucky Beekeeping School in Hazard, followed by the Allen County Beekeeping School Feb. 6 in Scottsville, the Southeast Beekeeping School Feb. 20 in Whitley City, the inaugural Northeast Kentucky Beekeeping School Feb. 27 in Morehead and the Audubon Beekeeping School March 6 in Henderson.

The largest event will be the Bluegrass Beekeeping School March 13 at Kentucky State University in Frankfort. The featured speaker will be Dr. Dave Tarpy, entomology professor at North Carolina State University. Kentucky State University Apiculture Extension Specialist Dr. Tom Webster will teach beginning beekeeping sessions. Nearly 400 beekeepers and six vendors attended the 2009 Bluegrass Beekeeping School.

For more information on each school, visit www.kyagr.com/statevet/bees/index.htm. (Contact: Bill Clary, 502-564-1137)

OK: PROGRAM OFFERS MANUAL, ONLINE TOOLS FOR SCHOOLS AND PRODUCERS
Published: January 26, 2010

Oklahoma’s Farm to School (FTS) program is distributing a new publication with tips and tools for producers and school service programs to help increase locally grown foods in schools.  The manual is also available online with several produce and cost calculators as well as food safety logs for producers.

Chris Kirby, Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food, and Forestry FTS coordinator, said the manual is intended to help increase participation in the program not only in Oklahoma but throughout the nation.

“Farm to School is expanding all over the country and we’re excited that Oklahoma is one of the nation’s leaders in increasing local food consumption in our school systems,” she said.  “This “how-to” manual helps show what people can do to get local foods into their schools.”

The manual was made possible through funds provided by USDA-Federal State Marketing Improvement Program, she said.  Oklahoma State University, the Kerr Center for Sustainable Agriculture, and the Oklahoma State Department of Education assisted the state agriculture department by providing expertise and co-authoring the manual. (Contact: Chris Kirby, chris.kirby@oda.state.ok.us)

CO: GOVERNOR’S FORUM ON AGRIULTURE TO LOOK AT RESEARCH INITIATIVES
Published: January 26, 2010

State and national leaders in the field of agriculture, including Gov. Bill Ritter, Commissioner of Agriculture John Stulp, Colorado State University President Tony Frank and CSU Dean of the College of Agricultural Sciences Craig Beyrouty, will speak at the annual Governor’s Forum on Colorado Agriculture on Thursday, Feb. 18 at the Renaissance Denver Hotel, 3801 Quebec St.

The forum themed, “Energizing Colorado Agriculture through Strategic Research,” will begin at 8 a.m. with opening remarks by Gov. Ritter and Commissioner Stulp.

Colorado State University President Frank will discuss the many ways that CSU connects with farmers and ranchers across the state. Colorado State is involved in a variety of interests from wheat research to livestock production including emerging markets, such as organics. Colorado State researchers are helping to answer questions surrounding food availability, food affordability and food safety.

CSU College of Agricultural Sciences Dean Beyrouty will detail some of the emerging and strategic research initiatives that are being developed hand-in-hand with the agricultural industry in the state.

There will also be featured national speakers and a series of breakout sessions highlighting crop research, livestock research, organics on the small acreage farm and crops for health.

A pre-forum reception will be held from 5:30-7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 17 at the Governor’s Residence at Boettcher Mansion.

Deadline for early registration is Feb. 8. The cost is $100 or $45 for students. After Feb. 8, registration is $120 or $50 for students. To register, visit www.colorado.gov/ag/forum or call (303) 239-4100.

The Governor’s Forum on Colorado Agriculture is hosted by Gov. Ritter, the Colorado Department of Agriculture and Colorado State University with the support of the Colorado Agricultural Leadership Associates and more than 50 organizations, businesses and agencies interested in the future of Colorado agriculture. (Contact: Jim Beers, Jim.Beers@colostate.edu)

NC: NCDA & CS TO HOST FOOD MARKETING WORKSHOP SERIES
Published: January 26, 2010

Turning a small or part-time value-added food business into a full-time business is a big step, but a new marketing series is designed to help food entrepreneurs decide if it is a move that makes sense for them.

 “Food Marketing in the Real World” will take place March 9, “Making Media Work for Your Food Business” will be held July 20, and “The Secrets of Marketing and Selling Success” will be held Nov. 9.

The registration period is now open for the March 9 workshop, and will open June 1 for the July 20 event and Oct. 4 for the Nov. 9 workshop.

The workshops, hosted by the N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services and sponsored by Carteret Community College, will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 4:15 p.m. at the college’s Small Business Center in Morehead City.

The workshops will cover a variety of topics, including creating a competitive advantage, understanding the difference between sales and marketing, knowing when to make the move from part-time to professional, marketing to food service and retail, and understanding the financial considerations of expanding a business.

Each workshop costs $30, which covers materials and lunch. The deadline for each workshop will be the week prior to the event date. Space is limited to 30 people, and interested participants are encouraged to register early once the registration period opens.

For a registration form for the March 9 workshop, go to www.ncagr.gov/markets/agbizmarketing.htm. (Contact: Annette Dunlap, 919-733-7887)

IN: ISDA SEEKS NEW LIVESTOCK PRODUCTION PROGRAM MANAGER
Published: January 26, 2010

The chosen candidate will serve as a liaison to all livestock organizations, county fair boards, and industry partners and educate livestock producers on new state laws and programs. This position will play a vital role in ISDA's economic opportunity team and be critical to ISDA's Certified Livestock Producer Program.

·         Livestock Production Program Manager

·         Job ID #: 566436

·         State of Indiana, Marion County

·         If you are a current state employee, select this link. 

·         If you are seeking an opportunity within state government, select this link.