September 26, 2001
Contact: Steven
Cohen; 202-347-3600
cohens@nppc.org
NPPC COMMENDS BIPARTISAN SENATE FARM BILL GOALS
National Pork
Producers Council (NPPC) President Barb Determan today commended the
bipartisan goals established for the next farm bill by Senate
Agriculture Committee Chairman Tom Harkin (D-IA) and Sen. Dick Lugar
(R-IN).
"Sens. Harkin, and
Lugar have crafted a set of comprehensive objectives that covers a broad
range of policy issues that must be addressed to ensure the continued
viability and profitability of U.S. agriculture in the 21st
century," said Determan, a pork producer and grain farmer from Early,
Iowa. "Their principles reflect the enormous diversity and potential for
growth of the food and agricultural sector, which has changed
dramatically since the last farm bill was written."
Determan said it was
important to raise the profile of incentive based conservation programs
on working lands, which holds the promise of "producing tremendous
environmental gains for our country."
"All livestock and
poultry producers will face costly state and federal environmental
regulations designed to protect water and air quality," Determan said.
The Harkin-Lugar principles are dedicated to helping livestock producers
acquire the cost-share and technical assistance necessary for achieving
the environmental results we all desire while remaining economically
viable."
Determan said the
Harkin-Lugar principles reflect many of the same issues that pork
producers have aggressively called for in a new farm bill, including:
Additional resources for foreign market development and promotion
programs to boost U.S. pork exports; incentives to help livestock
producers fully develop the value of their nutrients while protecting
the environment; helping producers reposition their operations to
capture a larger share of the consumer food dollar; doubling agriculture
research funding over the next five years to reverse 15 years of
stagnation; increasing federal expenditures for USDA’s rural development
grant and loan programs; and measures to strengthen agriculture’s
infrastructure to ensure the safety of America’s food supply and the
protection of American livestock.