ST. LOUIS (June 1, 2011) — For the third year in a row, our nation’s capital will learn about the U.S. family farmers who produce corn, our nation’s top crop, as part of the Corn Farmers Coalition program that debuts today at Union Station, an important venue for reaching policymakers inside “The Beltway.”

“Even in the 21st Century, corn farming remains a family operation,” said Kansas Corn Commission Chairman Mike Brzon, a farmer from Courtland, Kan. “In many cases, such as mine, this vocation goes back multiple generations. The family farmer growing corn for a hungry world isn’t a myth, but a critical economic engine for our country and it’s important that policymakers and influencers realize this.”

Corn farmers from 14 states and the National Corn Growers Association are supporting the Corn Farmers Coalition program to introduce a foundation of facts seen as essential to decision making, rather than directly influencing legislation and regulation.

“Once again, we’re putting a face on today’s family farmers to showcase the productivity and environmental advances being made in the industry and to provide factual information on how innovative and high-tech corn farmers have become,” said Brzon.

The Corn Farmers Coalition is launching its major advertising campaign today with “station saturation” at Union Station that will put prominent facts about family farmers in Capital Hill publications, radio, frequently used websites, the Metro and Reagan National Airport. The program will continue until Congress recesses in August.

“Last year, we saw a good response to our positive and proactive efforts, and this year we have many new people inside the Beltway to educate,” said NCGA President Bart Schott, a grower in North Dakota. “As urban and suburban America gets further removed from the agricultural roots that made our nation strong, we’re saying it’s time again for everyone to come home to the farm.”

It’s not just about advertising, Schott noted. The coalition will meet with media, members of Congress, environmental groups and others to talk about farming’s bright future: how U.S. farmers, using the latest technologies, will continue to expand yields and how this productivity can be a bright spot in an otherwise struggling economy.

JP Dunn, Director of Field Services for the Missouri Soybean Association is our guest for this week’s report.  JP provides an update of the Soybean Association’s involvement with Missouri Farmers Care…..

Thanks to heavy rains and melting record snowpack – flows and reservoir releases of historic proportions and flooding are occurring along the Missouri River and many of its tributaries throughout Montana, the Dakotas, Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas and Missouri. With conditions worsening and no relief from precipitation – Brigadier General John McMahon – Commander of the Northwestern Division of the Army Corps of Engineers – says the integrity of the system would be jeopardized and loss of regulated flows likely without higher releases. To deal with all the water – the Corps is stepping up reservoir releases and sending record amounts of water downstream. They will soon release 150-thousand cubic feet per second from five of six main stem dams. According to McMahon – this will result in much higher levels on the river downstream at an earlier time than originally forecast.

McMahon says moving water out of the reservoirs is essential. He says more heavy rain storms could cause major revisions to the release plan – which is based on the rain already received and the rain and snow melt forecasted for the next five days.

Protecting lives is the main priority for the Corps right now – according to McMahon – and they are working closely with state and local emergency management teams.

The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association is utilizing social media to further its efforts against what it considers over regulation all across the nation by the Environmental Protection Agency. Tamara Thies – NCBA Chief Environmental Counsel – says people need to recognize what EPA is doing and work to stop its regulatory rampage – which is one reason why the organization launched a video on its You Tube channel Tuesday that features EPA’s potential dust regulation. NCBA Director of Communications Mike Deering says social media allows his organization to reach people not familiar with the war EPA has declared on farm and ranch families throughout the country. He says support needs to solidify within the ag industry – but also outside of the industry because the issue is bigger than just the cattle industry.

 

Texas Representative Kevin Brady wants people to have real conversations about the impact of international trade on the American cattle industry – as this week is World Trade Week and this month is American Beef Month. He says America has a great opportunity to open markets for U.S. beef by approving pending free trade agreements with Colombia, Panama and South Korea – which he says would enable nearly 12-million metric tons of beef produced annually to reach consumers worldwide.

Brady says the approval of the FTAs has many benefits. The combined agreements would increase the sales of American products by at least 13-billion dollars each year – and the Panama FTA is expected to increase exports, lower the trade deficit and stimulate U.S. economic growth. Another benefit would be the U.S.-South Korea Trade Promotion Agreement – which would reduce South Korea’s current tariff on U.S. beef from 40-percent to zero over the next 15 years. Once fully implemented – that would mean 325-million dollars in tariff reductions for the U.S. beef industry.

Brady says now is the time for Congress and the Obama Administration to level the playing field for America’s beef industry. He says when the playing field is leveled and American ranchers can sell goods around the world – jobs are created. He emphasizes the importance of selling American as well as buying American. Brady notes that unemployment still sits around nine-percent and stresses the importance of getting Americans back to work. The American cattle industry employs more than one-million farmers, ranchers and businesspeople – and Brady says the pending FTAs would boost U.S. economic growth by 10-billion dollars while also creating more than 250-thousand jobs.

Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley is participating in meetings this week in Brussels and Moscow to discuss various issues – including agricultural concerns. Grassley says the European Union and Russia are imposing non-tariff trade barriers against soybeans and pork produced by American farmers for the export market. He says the EU’s position on soybeans has created uncertainty for farmers, traders, co-ops and processors in the United States. He says Russia’s unjustified position against U.S. pork has de-listed plants that account for 60-percent of U.S. pork production capacity.

Grassley will deliver two separate letters about these issues while on his trip. One to the EU Commissioner on the soybean export dispute and the other to the Russian Federation First Deputy Prime Minister and Russian Federation President about the limits on U.S. pork. If Russia is to become a member of the World Trade Organization – Grassley says the country needs to get rid of unscientifically-based import restrictions.

The Global Harvest Initiative has published its latest issue brief outlining ways to optimize and leverage development assistance programs to address global hunger and food security by sustainably increasing the rate of global agricultural productivity. According to the brief – increased collaboration and efficiency among these programs and the organizations that manage them would maximize benefits and help alleviate the growing challenges of hunger and food security.

In the brief – the Global Harvest Initiative urges that more emphasis be placed on approaches like the Millennium Challenge Corporation – an independent U.S. foreign aid agency that has been effective at addressing global hunger and other development initiatives by refusing to operate in areas where corruption is evident – and focusing on basic infrastructure to foster private sector-led economic growth.

U.S. government delivers 58-billion dollars in foreign assistance annually. Dr. William Lasher – Executive Director of the Global Harvest Initiative – says it’s crucial to leverage and streamline resources to increase the rate of agricultural productivity and meet the needs of a growing population. Dr. Margaret Zeigler – Deputy Director of the Congressional Hunger Center – a GHI Consultative Partner – says with one-sixth of the world’s population in dire need – the time to act is now.

A new report from Oxfam raises concerns about the potential effects of unmitigated commodity speculation, escalating oil prices, underinvestment in agriculture technology and climate change on future world food supplies. But according to Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Bob Dinneen – the report misses the mark when it makes unsupported claims about the effect of biofuels on global food supplies.

Dinneen says American ethanol production has helped spur needed investment and research into dramatic advances in farming technology that have allowed U.S. farmers to double their production on the same amount of land from a generation ago. RFA believes the same opportunities at varying scales are available to farm communities in developing nations.

According to RFA – global hunger issues have long existed – fueled by inept and too often corrupt food aid programs, rampant food waste, commodity speculation and volatile energy prices. Dinneen says narrowing the focus to isolate one aspect – such as biofuel production – without addressing the dangers posed by a growing dependence on petroleum – will continue to have us chasing our tail.

National Cattlemen’s Beef Association President Bill Donald says the Fuel Feedstock Freedom Act – introduced by a bipartisan group of Congressmen – is a big step toward leveling the playing field for a bushel of corn. Backed by NCBA – the measure amends the Clean Air Act to allow states to opt out of the corn ethanol portion of the renewable fuel standard and to broaden eligibility of the cellulosic biofuels carve out by redefining “cellulosic biofuels” as “next generation biofuels” to allow non-ethanol sources of renewable fuel.

Donald says the new “feedstock neutral” definition will allow the development of non-ethanol advanced biofuels. Also – if a state legislature votes to opt out of the corn-ethanol portion of the RFS and the state’s governor signs the bill into law – the Environmental Protection Agency would reduce the national corn-based ethanol mandate by the national gasoline consumption percentage that is attributable to that state.

According to NCBA – member-passed policy supports the nation’s commitment to reducing our dependence on foreign oil and that includes ethanol. But Donald says they don’t support propping up an industry that should be able to stand on its own two feet. He says this bill applies some much needed common sense to renewable energy policy. He says it’s time to take the training wheels off of the corn-based ethanol industry.

The Fuel Feedstock Freedom Act was introduced in the Senate by James Inhofe of Oklahoma and Olympia Snowe of Maine. California’s Brian Bilbray and Darrell Issa, Oklahoma’s Dan Boren and Virginia’s Jim Moran introduced the House companion. NCBA is urging all members of Congress to support the bill.