IN THIS ISSUE:

• Corn Growers Pursue Goals as Adjournment Nears; White House Meets for Next Step
• NCGA's Support of Corn to Cuba Gains National Recognition
• Trade Promotion Authority Forwarded to Floor
• Corn Growers Support The Biotechnology and Agricultural Trade Program
• NCGA Attempts to Assuage Biotechnology Concerns
• NCGA Development Director Attends Annual Seed Professionals Conference
• NCGA Spreads the Message on Ethanol Co-Products
• NCGA's Indiana Leadership Conference Molds Grower Leaders
• NCGA Continues Support of Checkoff-Funded Research
• Corn Fiber Utilization Project Continues With Checkoff-Funded Help
• Corn Growers Send Letter to Santa
• There's Still Time to Apply for NCGA Corn Board

Corn Growers Pursue Goals as Adjournment Nears; White House Meets for Next Step
The Senate farm bill debate ended for the year on Wednesday, after the body failed for the third time to invoke cloture (a procedural move to limit debate). As promised by Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, D-SD, when the gavel fell on the measure that would have limited debate, the Senate resumed dealing with other legislative business.

The Senate's action leaves the farm bill in limbo, with no clear indication as to what the future will bring for S. 1731, Sen. Tom Harkin's, D-IA, farm bill proposal. However, officials at the White House have already started planning for the next round of debate. Most indications point to a statement from the Bush Administration reaffirming the increased spending levels it had previously committed itself to ($73.5 billion over 10 years), easing fears of a budget shortfall for the new agriculture legislation. A letter from the White House restating the commitment is expected any day. "We cannot continue with farm policy that contributes to lower market returns while increasing the dependency on Uncle Sam. A new farm bill must avoid the past when farmers' income was maximized by government payments and not market prices," said NCGA President Tim Hume. "We will continue to fight for new agriculture policy that is compatible with the goals of the WTO, is market responsive, competitive, and environmentally responsible, no matter when it finally reaches a vote."

As expected, Sens. Thad Cochran, R-MS, and Pat Roberts, R-KS, introduced a substitute to the commodity title. Although the Cochran - Roberts measure received the support of the Bush Administration, the measure was soundly defeated. Attempts to strike language that allows U.S. financial assistance for agricultural trade with Cuba failed as well. As the week wound down, and tensions flared, Sen. Tim Hutchinson, R-AR, introduced a substitute proposal that was basically identical to the House passed version of the farm bill. The Senator hoped to spur some kind of action in the stalled farm bill debate, but was unsuccessful.

For more information on the NCGA farm bill proposal, and the situation in the U.S. Senate, click here.

NCGA's Support of Corn to Cuba Gains National Recognition
For the first time since the Kennedy administration, Cuba has received goods from the United States, in the form of corn and other humanitarian aid due to the destruction wreaked by Hurricane Michelle in recent months. NCGA has long supported the exemption of food, feed and other agricultural products from unilaterally imposed sanctions, said Garry Niemeyer, a corn grower from Glenarm, Ill., and member of NCGA's Production and Stewardship Action Team. (More On This Story)

Trade Promotion Authority Forwarded to Floor
NCGA is encouraged the Senate Finance Committee formally forwarded the Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) bill to the Senate floor, after the Finance Committee approved the proposal earlier this month in committee markup. The Senate bill was drafted by Finance Committee Chairman Sen. Max Baucus, D-MT, and ranking member Sen. Charles Grassley, R-IA. The fast track proposal closely resembles the version that passed out of the House of Representatives, and is not expected to create as much controversy as the measure experienced in the House. Proponents of TPA believe this will lend credibility to U.S. trade negotiations, and encourage prospective trade partners to enter agreements with the U.S. Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, D-SD, must now schedule the TPA bill for floor time.

NCGA is an active advocate of Trade Promotion Authority, and encourages growers to learn the many ways in which corn would benefit for the imposition of such a rule. Log onto the Leader Resource Center for more information.

DID YOU KNOW??
http://www.ncga.com/offers up-to-date Ag News, Weather and Market information. Customize weather information to your local area. Check it out!

Corn Growers Support The Biotechnology and Agricultural Trade Program
In a letter sent Monday to the United States Senate, the AgBiotech Planning Committee, of which the NCGA is a member, urged members' strong support for Section 333 of the Senate farm bill, the Agriculture, Conservation and Rural Enhancement Act of 2001. "We are beginning to see an intertwining of trade and biotechnology. Section 333 of the Senate farm bill, S. 1731, authorizes a valuable and important program called the Biotechnology and Agricultural Trade Program," said Tim Hume, a Walsh, Colo., corn grower and president of NCGA. (More On This Story)

NCGA Attempts to Calm Biotechnology Concerns
Biotechnology remains the hot dish of the month in the food industry. Studies, reports and misleading claims run rampant in newspaper headlines and magazines across the country. Leading news sources in the United States banter biotech language around an unfamiliar public, often frightening consumers with statements that have no factual basis, relying instead on accusations that agriculture is engaged in a "weird science" that is somehow bad for people. The United States government is growing concerned, and so is the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the agency in charge of overseeing the safety of the U.S. food supply. NCGA is not opposed in principle to either labeling or traceability. NCGA supports the right for consumers to know. Labeling should not be mandatory and/or should be based on scientific principle. For a look at important biotechnology issues, log on to the NCGA Leader Resource Center.

NCGA Development Director Attends Annual Seed Professionals Conference
The NCGA was there when the ASTA recently held its annual conference recently in Chicago, Ill. The event is the largest gathering of seed professionals in the world and features the industry's largest trade show, Seed Expo 2001. Tom Slunecka, director of development for the NCGA, was on hand for the event and said the meeting was very productive. "There are a lot of great people at this event every year," he said, "and NCGA has made a positive statement to them about our involvement in seed issues." (More On This Story)

NCGA Spreads the Message on Ethanol Co-Products
Ethanol is quickly becoming the fuel of choice in the U.S., as a safer, cleaner-burning alternative to MTBE, a petroleum based product. A valuable co-product of dry grind ethanol distillation is distillers grain, which can be used as a protein supplement in livestock feed. The NCGA recognizes the importance of co-products and recently sent NCGA Livestock Services Manager Tracy Snider to Austin, Tex., to speak at the Texas Ethanol Conference. (More On This Story)

DID YOU KNOW??
http://www.ncga.com offers a comprehensive Legislative Action Center. Contact your elected state and national representatives online and track key legislation.

NCGA's Indiana Leadership Conference Molds Grower Leaders
Representatives of the NCGA journeyed to Indiana this week at the request of the Indiana Corn Growers Association to host a leadership seminar focusing on media and presentation training. The conference, sponsored by Syngenta Crop Protection, was held Tuesday and Wednesday in Indianapolis. (More On
This Story)

NCGA Continues Support of Checkoff-Funded Research
The NCGA is continuing to leverage corn checkoff dollars with the maximum benefit to the nation's corn growers. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is sponsoring a $1.7 million project to turn corn into 1,3-propanediol, a polymer that can be used to create a new form of synthetic fiber similar to polyester. (More On This Story)

Corn Fiber Utilization Project Continues With Checkoff-Funded Help
Corn fiber utilization represents untapped potential for agricultural researchers and is one of several projects the NCGA is involved in, leveraging corn checkoff funds with U.S. Department of Energy grants to find new uses for corn. (More On This Story)

Corn Growers Send Letter to Santa
Dear Santa...
We at the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) have been really, extra-special good this year. We've promoted cleaner burning ethanol to protect the environment and checkoff-funded research to use more of our abundant corn crop to provide consumers with better goods. We've also worked to share accessibility of biotechnology crops and to play nicely with our international trading partners. Because we've been good, we have a few things we'd like to have in our stockings on Christmas morning: (More On This Story)

There's Still Time to Apply for NCGA Corn Board
With any great organization, there are great leaders to guide them. The NCGA Corn Board is a group of fifteen great grower leaders who work together to make decisions that affect the 32,000 members of the nation's premier corn grower association. They, in turn, represent the interests of more than 300,000 U.S. corn growers. The deadline for applications has been extended to Dec. 31 so you can still be a part of that process by applying for a position on the NCGA Corn Board.

To qualify, applicants must be an NCGA member, a corn producer (owner, manager or operator) and a checkoff contributor, if applicable. To receive application materials for yourself or someone else, please call Kathy Baker at the St. Louis office, 314/275-9915, ext 111, or email at baker@ncga.com.

NCGA THIS WEEK

• Dec. 24-25 NCGA offices in St. Louis and Washington D.C., will be closed for Christmas. NCGA would like to wish you a happy and safe holiday!
  
  
• Dec. 26-28 NCGA offices will be open for regular office hours.