05/14/2012

S P E C I A L

R E P O R T

‘Trade’

Granting permanent normal trade relations to Russia is among Farm Bureau’s trade priorities | 4 May 14, 2012 Vol. 91

‘Miss. River’

AFBF seeks to intervene in lawsuit with regulatory implications for farmers and ranchers in 31 states | 6

‘Cutting Edge’ Virginia farm market and nursery is part of a growing agricultural industry | 8

Trust the experts on farm animal care

No. 9 fbnews.org

Farm Bureau urges action on bipartisan legislation to prevent EPA overreach With the introduction of a House measure to preserve existing state and federal responsibilities within the Clean Water Act, both chambers are now poised to prevent the Environmental Protection Agency and Corps of Engineers from using guidance they developed to broaden federal control over more water bodies and land.

Introduced in April by Reps.

John Mica (R-Fla.), Nick Rahall

(D-W.Va.), Frank Lucas (R-Okla.), Collin Peterson (D-Minn.) and Bob Gibbs (R-Ohio), the measure (H.R. 4965) mirrors a bill introduced in the Senate last year. The Senate version (S. 2245) is sponsored by Sens. John Barrasso (RWyo.), Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.), Dean Heller (R-Nev.), Jeff Sessions (RAla.) and 26 others.

The bipartisan bill does not alter the Clean Water Act, but it reaffirms longstanding provisions

in the law. It would prevent the EPA and the Corps from pursuing the agencies’ proposed Final Guidance on Identifying Waters Protected by the Clean Water Act and from using it as a basis for regulation.

EPA and the Corps have confirmed that their guidance will result in an increase in determinations that they have jurisdiction EPA Continued on Page 6

FB calls for Senate action on farm bill

By Chris Chinn When my car doesn’t run right, I don’t call the salesman who sold it to me. Instead I call the expert, my mechanic, to guide me in the care and maintenance of my car.

Continued on Page 3

©istockphoto.com/SHARPLY_DONE

n e w s p a p e r

TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE in passing the next farm bill, according to a letter that the American Farm Bureau Federation and dozens of other groups sent to Senate leaders. The bill is awaiting floor action in the Senate.

The American Farm Bureau Federation and dozens of other farm-, ranch- and wildlife-related organizations are urging Senate leaders to bring the Agriculture Reform, Food and Jobs Act of 2012, the farm bill, to the floor for a vote as quickly as possible.

The bill passed the Senate Agriculture Committee on April 26 on a strong bipartisan vote of 16-5.

“The stakeholders we represent need to know details of the programs which will be in effect in 2013 as soon as possible,” the groups wrote last week to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (DNev.) and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.). “Timely action will also enhance prospects for completing new legislation this year rather than needing to extend current program authorities.”

The Senate Agriculture Com-

mittee bill contributes agriculture’s fair share toward deficit reduction by cutting spending by $23 billion, AFBF and the other organizations noted.

“This is one piece of legislation upon which all Americans depend, urban as well as rural,” they said. “With limited time remaining before the expiration of current program authorities, time is of the essence. While each of our respective organizations will continue to work to accomplish our key priorities, the farm bill must move forward.”

Even with the cuts, the committee was able to protect and strengthen the federal crop insurance program. In a letter Farm Bureau sent to Senate Agriculture Committee Chair Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) and Ranking Member Pat Roberts (R-Kan.) before

the markup, the organization outlined its support for several points in the draft, including the lawmakers’ decision to not reduce funding for crop insurance and to focus programs on “a commodity title that attempts to encourage producers to follow market signals rather than making planting decisions in anticipation of government payments.”

One of the best things about the bill, according to many growers, is that it’s ready for floor votes. But while the importance of completing a farm bill cannot be overstated, according to Farm Bureau, that shouldn’t stop lawmakers from taking the time to refine and adjust the measure.

“We will continue to seek improvements in several areas as this Farm bill Continued on Page 3

Viewpoint

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May 14, 2012

The

Bob Stallman

President, American Farm Bureau Federation

USDA: Celebrating 150 years of innovation

P

resident Abraham Lincoln is known for many achievements during his lifetime, but a little known triumph of his—that affects farmers and ranchers greatly—was the establishment of the United States Department of Agriculture 150 years ago.

On May 15, 1862, President Lincoln signed into law a bill establishing a new Department of Agriculture, which was specifically directed to acquire information through “practical and scientific experiments” and to collect and propagate “new and valuable seeds and plants” and distribute these to the nation’s agriculturists.

It is clear, Lincoln was a man beyond his time.

A man with a vision

Lincoln understood the importance of agriculture to America, and, as importantly, he realized science and technology played a major role in the farming industry. Without a doubt, I believe Lincoln today would embrace the many technological advancements farmers use on their farms, including biotechnology.

Lincoln once wrote: “Every blade of grass is a study, and to produce two, where there was but one, is both a profit and a pleasure. And not grass alone, but soils, seeds and seasons— hedges, ditches and fences, draining, droughts and irrigation—plowing, hoeing and harrowing—reaping, mowing and threshing—sav-

ing crops, pests of crops, diseases of crops and what will prevent or cure them … the thousand things of which these are specimens—each a world of study within itself.”

The federal government was, from the beginning of its involvement in agriculture, dedicated to scientific progress in farming. This commitment continues today and is shared by farmers and ranchers across the country, regardless of the methods of food and fiber production they use—organic, conventional or biotechnology. They all need science.

Full speed ahead

The importance of science and innovation— biotechnology in particular—to agriculture will be significant as we face several challenges in the years ahead. The world’s population just passed the 7 billion mark. According to the World Food Program, the best estimate is that 1 billion people (one in seven) are hungry and food insecure. By 2050 the world’s population will rise to 9 billion people. This means we must double world food production by 2050 in order to meet this challenge.

Further, we must accomplish this hefty goal while realizing that our Earth is fragile. To take care of our environment, we must embrace agricultural research, science, innovation and biotechnology. When it comes to medical care,

communication and transportation, we accept the importance of innovation. We need to do the same when it comes to the production of food.

Earlier this year, the United Nations issued a special report recognizing that “new ‘green’ biotechnologies can….improve resistance to pests, restore soil fertility and contribute to the diversification of the rural economy.”

Sound familiar? Seems a lot like what Lincoln described as a goal 150 years ago.

Scientists have developed new seeds that can improve yields while resisting disease and requiring less water. That is critical as agriculture uses 70 percent of all fresh water. Consumers can feel safe with this technology and confident it will improve our environment.

While meeting these quantitative challenges and meeting our environmental goals, we will strive to focus even greater attention on the qualitative side, to also meet the needs of consumers who express a preference for foods grown “their way.” Science is the answer for all these missions, and today’s USDA is helping to blaze that trail.

So, happy birthday, USDA, and best wishes as we continue down the road for another 150 years. America’s farmers, ranchers and research scientists can lead the way to a new 21st century Green Revolution if we follow the vision of Abraham Lincoln. As Honest Abe said, “Leave nothing for tomorrow which can be done today.”

Death and taxes

By Sen. John Thune With tax day just behind us, I am reminded of a quote by Benjamin Franklin: “In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.”

The loss of a loved one is an especially difficult time for family members. The grieving process becomes even more difficult and prolonged for heirs of family businesses, farms and ranches as they face looming and often crippling death taxes when a death in the family occurs.

More than 70 percent of family businesses do not survive to the second generation, and 90 percent of family businesses do not survive to the third generation.

The federal government has no place forcing grieving families to pay a tax on their loved one’s life savings or estate that have been built from income already taxed

FBNews

Let’s play!

The death tax is an unnecessary, burdensome and sometimes devastating double tax. when it was initially earned. The death tax is an unnecessary, burdensome and sometimes devastating double tax.

I recently introduced legislation (S. 2242) that would repeal the federal estate tax and the generation skipping transfer tax.

In a study, former Congressional Budget Office Director Douglas Holtz-Eakin found that repealing the death tax would create 1.5 million additional small business jobs. Therefore, my bill will not only ease the transition of assets, including small businesses, farms and ranches, to family members

Don Lipton, Executive Director, Public Relations Lynne Finnerty, Editor Erin Anthony, Assistant Editor Phyllis Brown, Assistant Editor Sarah Bittner, Contributing Writer

May 14, 2012 Vol. 91

when an owner dies, it will also create hundreds of thousands of jobs for unemployed Americans.

This tax punishes farmers and entrepreneurs for a lifetime of hard work. It is time to put a nail in the coffin of the death tax.

Sen. John Thune is a member of the Senate committees on Agriculture, Nutrition & Forestry; Budget; Commerce; Science & Transportation; and Finance.

No. 9

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Developed to engage young people, teachers and parents through games, fun family activities and educator resources, My American Farm helps farmers and ranchers share their story about how agriculture serves consumers and the nation.

Over the last year, the foundation has expanded My American Farm to 15 interactive, educational games.

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Capitol View

Farm Bureau: Lawmakers must act on tax extenders Action by Congress before the end of the year to extend several important tax provisions, including incentives for renewable energy and deductions for small businesses and the self-employed, is critical to farmers and ranchers, the American Farm Bureau Federation said last week in a statement to the House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Select Revenue Measures.

Although the subcommittee was addressing only provisions categorized as expiring because of their short-term nature or history of multiple extensions, Farm Bureau first emphasized the importance of extending the current estate tax exemption and rate, maintaining the capital gains and individual income tax rates and holding the Alternative Minimum Tax harmless.

When estate taxes on an agricultural business exceed cash and other liquid assets, surviving family partners may be forced to sell land, buildings or equipment needed to keep their business op-

erating, Farm Bureau continued.

This not only can cripple a farm or ranch operation, but also hurts the rural communities and businesses that agriculture supports.

Among the tax provisions that expire at the end of the year or have already expired are several related to renewable energy.

American farmers and ranchers are playing a bigger role in supplying the nation with the energy it needs, according to Farm Bureau.

Agricultural-based renewable energy sources help America achieve long-term economic growth, create a cleaner environment and shield the economy from unreliable foreign energy sources.

To boost renewable technologies and support development of the necessary market infrastructure, long-term extensions of renewable tax incentives, like those for biodiesel and electricity produced from wind and biomass, are needed. Incentives to build pipelines and pumps for renewable fuels should also be extended,

Farm Bureau said.

Self-employed individuals, including most farmers and ranchers, face unique challenges, including finding and paying for health insurance. Many use a deduction for health insurance premiums against income taxes, and AFBF said it’s important that Congress reinstate and extend this deduction.

Another critical deduction for growers is bonus depreciation, which can be used immediately when they buy new equipment.

This improves cash flow and allows farm and ranch businesses to better match income and expenses.

Similarly, Section 179 allows small businesses to expense the cost of qualified property in lieu of depreciation. Another cash flow-related tax provision is that for the five year depreciation of farm equipment. This provision, which needs to be reinstated and extended, matches the five-year period of debt service typical for farm equipment to the number of

years allowed for depreciation of business machinery or equipment.

Rural health care provider, food donation and farmland preservation incentives are also important.

Rural areas often suffer from shortages of physicians and other health care providers, and the costs of providing quality health care in rural areas can extend beyond available resources. To help address this tight supply of rural care givers, lawmakers should also extend the tax-free treatment of scholarships awarded to health care providers who agree to practice in underserved areas, Farm Bureau said.

Many farmers and ranchers already donate gleaned food to charitable organizations to help feed the hungry, and many more would do so if they had help paying harvest and transportation costs.

To encourage the preservation of farmland and recognize the value of protected farmland, the enhanced deduction for donated conservation easements should be extended.

Domino’s trusts the experts on farm animal care Continued from page 1 My car salesman may know a lot about my car, but it doesn’t mean he knows how my car was built or why it might be sputtering along like a lost turtle. On the other hand, I trust my mechanic to fix my car because that is what he does each day; he is the expert in repairing cars. Each of these individuals is great at his job, but it doesn’t mean they can automatically do the other’s job.

Our family has been raising livestock for five generations. It’s a tradition we are proud of, and we hope our children will have the opportunity to follow in our path one day.

Our animals rely on us seven days a week to care for them. We do this no matter what hour of the day it is or what day of the week it may be. Animal care is a top priority for our family; that’s why we rely on the expert advice of our veterinarian, nutritionist and other animal experts when it comes to the daily care we give our hogs and cattle.

We use gestation stalls on our farm to protect our sows during their pregnancy from bully sows.

The stalls also allow us to monitor feed intake of each individual sow and we can tailor their nutrition needs individually. If a sow isn’t eating, we know it right away and we can prevent problems from occurring. We also are able to give each sow individual, hands-on care daily by using the stalls. I can tell you for a fact that our animals are well cared for, content and comfortable.

Until the animal experts we work with tell us there is a better way, we will continue to protect and care for our sows in this way.

I was so encouraged to hear that the stockholders of Domino’s Pizza share my stand on animal care. The company announced that it would rely on animal experts to determine what is the best way to raise an animal that’s being used for food. As a farmer,

Chris Chinn (right), husband Kevin, daughter Rachelle and son Conner on their family farm in northern Missouri. Chinn says she appreciates a recent decision by Domino’s Pizza shareholders to rely on veterinarians and other animal experts in deciding whether to require certain animal care practices.

I respect Domino’s for its commonsense decision and for trusting the experts in animal care.

I appreciate Domino’s respect for our veterinarians, nutritionists and animal scientists. These are the same experts our family relies on for animal care.

Domino’s decision speaks volumes to me as a farmer. It shows they trust the experts I trust. It shows they trust me. I appreciate that.

Domino’s trust also shows me that the pizza company does not want to force regulations on farmers that may not achieve their desired outcome. There is already a lot of consolidation in the number of hog farmers in America, and perhaps the sector declining the most is the number of independent hog farmers. We own our facilities and our animals. We have a big stake in the success of our business and in the happiness of those who buy pork from us.

Mandating unrealistic timelines on family farmers regarding the animal care methods they choose could force more hog farmers

out of business. I know that is not the goal of any company, but the unintended consequences of these decisions can have a big impact to family farms like mine.

Members of my family, especially my kids, love pizza just about as much as they love farming. I think

the next time we decide to have pizza, I’m going to show a little love back. I am going to buy a Domino’s pizza. For me, this means driving 45 minutes out of my way but I think it’s worth it to support a company that supports me. And it gives a vote of support to a company that leaves important decisions like animal care up to the experts!

While I’m at it, I think I will write a note to the local manager thanking his company for their decision. You can show your support for Domino’s too. During the weekend of May 19-20 many farmers and ranchers I know will be voting with their checkbooks by buying Domino’s pizza for their families as a sign of our appreciation.

Thank you, Domino’s, for supporting our farm and ranch families.

Chris Chinn and her family raise hogs, cattle and feed grains in Clarence, Mo. Chris is a member of the Missouri Farm Bureau board of directors and a past-chair of the American Farm Bureau Young Farmers & Ranchers Committee. This article is reprinted with permission from the Just Farmers blog (http://www.justfarmers.biz/blog/).

FB calls for Senate action on farm bill Continued from page 1 bill moves forward, particularly in how to provide more equity among commodities, and ways to better address deep, catastrophic losses,” AFBF President Bob Stallman said after committee passage. “Now that this first phase has been completed, we will continue to assist senators in any way we can to assemble a final Senate bill that addresses the challenges and risks faced by today’s farm families.”

On the House side, last week, the Agriculture Subcommittee on Nutrition and Horticulture heard from specialty crop growers and those who work with the

bill’s nutrition programs, while the Subcommittee on Operations, Oversight and Credit focused on the legislation’s credit programs.

The committee has also held farm bill hearings on conservation and rural development and has plans for more this week.

“Farmers and ranchers appreciate House Agriculture Committee Chairman Frank Lucas’ (R-Okla.) effort to get input from all who are affected by the farm bill,” said Dale Moore, AFBF deputy executive director of public policy. “We’re looking forward to the committee completing their hearings and moving quickly to the drafting of the farm bill.”

Trade

Congress turns to PNTR on eve of Russia WTO accession House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Dave Camp (R-Mich.) said recently that the committee would hold a hearing in June on permanent normal trade relations with Russia. Until now, there has been little to no progress on moving the PNTR issue in the House.

The economic benefits of granting Russia PNTR are clear, Camp said in remarks on April 26 before the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

“In granting PNTR, we would give up nothing—not a single U.S. tariff—but we would obtain a powerful new enforcement tool and important rights, while bringing our two countries closer on multiple fronts,” Camp said.

He urged the Obama administration to use the month of May to make the case for why Congress should act this year on PNTR. Congress hasn’t been able to agree and make progress on many issues lately, but one bill it must pass, in addition to extending expiring tax provisions and writing a new farm bill, according to the American Farm Bureau Federation, is legislation granting Russia PNTR. Russia will enter the World Trade Organization by July 23.

When it does, WTO member countries will benefit from Russia’s commitment to open its market for food and agricultural products—all countries except the U.S., that is.

A U.S. law, the Jackson-Vanik

amendment passed by Congress in 1974, requires annual reviews of Russia’s normal trade relations status, depending on whether Russia allows its citizens to emigrate freely. Camp acknowledged that many members of Congress remain concerned about human rights issues in Russia; however, “holding up PNTR because of non-trade concerns does not increase our leverage to address them,” he said.

Under WTO rules, members are to extend immediate and unconditional nondiscriminatory treatment to the exports of other members. Unless the U.S. removes the Jackson-Vanik conditions to its trade relations status, Russia has the right to withhold from U.S. exports the expanded market opportunities that it agreed to extend to WTO members.

Under its WTO accession agreement, Russia will reduce tariff rates and domestic farm subsidies, as well as eliminate export subsidies, immediately upon joining. It will make additional tariff reductions over time. Russia also has agreed to follow globally-accepted scientific standards on food safety and health issues and limit trade disruptions.

Achieving PNTR for Russia so that U.S. farmers and ranchers can benefit from these trade commitments is a top trade priority for Farm Bureau, says AFBF trade specialist David Salmonsen.

“We are optimistic that Russia’s agreement and accession to the WTO will bring them into a rulesbased market and bring more certainty to U.S.-Russia agricul-

U.S. agricultural exports to Russia have been volatile over the last decade as Russia at times has stopped issuing import certificates for U.S. poultry or required unnecessary testing and processing of poultry products. U.S. agricultural exports to Russia were valued at over $1.2 billion in 2011.

tural trade,” he explained. “The Russian market is an important one, particularly for U.S. beef, pork and poultry exports.”

Russia once was the United States’ No. 1 export market for poultry meat. After several incidences of import bans and arbitrary requirements for additional inspections and unnecessary sanitary processing, poultry exports to Russia have dropped to less than half of what they were two years ago. Now, our top poultry export markets are closer to home —Canada and Mexico. But, with poultry imports of $250 million last year, the Russian market is still an important one for U.S. producers.

“Russia has remained in the top three or four export markets for poultry meat,” said Salmonsen. “Bringing more predictability and access to that market will strengthen our ability to remain a key supplier of protein to Russia.”

Russia will maintain a 250,000ton tariff-rate quota for chicken halves and quarters, with the inquota tariff at 25 percent, and with a separate TRQ for turkey products. Just as importantly, Russia has agreed to follow WTO rules on so-called Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures, limiting the types of trade disruptions that have put a dent in U.S. poultry exports.

In addition, the U.S. will have access to 11,000 tons of a worldwide TRQ for fresh beef and will have its own TRQ of 60,000 tons of frozen beef, with an in-quota tariff of 15 percent. Russia has

agreed to a TRQ of 400,000 tons for fresh and frozen pork, with a separate TRQ of 30,000 tons for pork trimmings. Both pork TRQs will have zero in-quota tariffs.

U.S. agricultural exports to Russia were valued at over $1.2 billion in 2011, with meat exports as the largest segment, by far. Live animals and tree nuts also were top exports.

An effort is under way to pass a bill to sanction Russians responsible for human rights abuses. The Sergei Magnitsky Rule of Law Accountability Act (S. 1039, H.R. 4405) would require the State Department to list the people responsible for the imprisonment of Sergei Magnitsky, a Russian lawyer and critic of Russia’s tax policies who died in police custody, and freeze their assets held by U.S. banks, as well as deny them visas. The bill could be combined with a Russia PNTR bill, complicating the effort to grant PNTR and improve trade. Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman John Kerry (D-Mass.) had planned to bring up the Magnitsky bill in late April, but then scrapped the hearing.

The Obama administration opposes the Magnitsky bill.

Salmonsen said that AFBF would prefer to see a clean PNTR measure moved in the House and the Senate.

“PNTR for Russia should be supported and passed for its positive impact on U.S. trade,” he said.

Under Russia’s WTO accession agreement, it will maintain a 250,000 ton tariff-rate quota for chicken halves and leg quarters with an in-quota tariff rate of 25 percent.

Russia also agreed to follow globally-accepted scientific standards on food safety and health-related issues, an area that has disrupted U.S. poultry exports to Russia several times over the last decade.

May 14, 2012

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R E P O R T

From Cold War enemy to key trade partner— a historical look at U.S.-Russia agricultural trade In 1972, the U.S. negotiated a Russian wheat deal that resulted in the U.S. exporting more wheat to Russia that year than total U.S. wheat exports the previous year. The Russians had a disastrous wheat harvest in 1971 and needed to find supplies outside their borders.

The heavily subsidized U.S. wheat sales to Russia boosted U.S. crop prices and were a prelude to several years of Russian dependence on U.S. grain exports.

Anyone old enough to remember the Cold War era knows that during the 1970s and 1980s, the then-Soviet Union (USSR) relied heavily on grain imports to support a state-driven expansion of its livestock sector. In January 1980, President Jimmy Carter imposed a grain embargo against the USSR in response to its 1979 invasion of Afghanistan.

The American Farm Bureau Federation opposed the embargo, because it was just as punitive to America’s farmers as it was to the USSR, and AFBF felt that the president should have exhausted oth-

er persuasive actions before putting the embargo in place.

The embargo became a top concern of farmers during the 1980 presidential campaign, and shortly after Ronald Reagan became president in 1981, the

in a recent meeting with the French ambassador, gave the impression of releasing that nation from its obligation to observe the European Community’s support of the embargo on grain sales to the Soviet

grain embargo was lifted.

In the intervening months, however, thenAFBF President Robert Delano expressed frustration that U.S. farmers had sacrificed, while others did not.

“We find it incredible and totally incomprehensible that Secretary of State Alexander Haig,

Union,” Delano said in an April 6, 1981, article in Farm Bureau News. He estimated the embargo had cost U.S. farmers as much as $3 billion in lost sales.

Reagan, on April 24, 1981, fulfilled his campaign promise to lift the embargo. Delano applauded

the action and expressed his hope that, in the future, food would not be used “as a weapon.” Of course, the U.S. has maintained an embargo against Cuba, although it has been eased in recent years.

Over the last two decades, Russia has reduced its livestock sector, resulting in a drastic decrease of U.S. grain exports and a large increase in U.S. exports of meat and other high-value products to Russia.

Russia’s accession to the World Trade Organization brings the U.S.-Russia trade relationship full-circle. With Russia agreeing to eliminate its own export subsidies, lower import tariffs and operate under global trade rules governing food safety and animal health standards and resolution of trade disputes, the U.S. agricultural sector will benefit from Russia’s graduation from Cold War opponent to ally in the march for liberalized global trade, once the U.S. enacts legislation to grant Russia permanent normal trade relations.

BSE, EU beef trade, TPP among top trade issues Farmers and ranchers are market watchers, and for many that includes export markets. The following is a round-up of some of the top agricultural trade topics.

EU opens market door wider for hormone-free U.S. beef The European Union recently announced that it will allow more imports of U.S. beef raised without artificial growth hormones. Beginning Aug. 1, 2012, the tariff-rate quota (TRQ) for imports of hormone-free beef will increase from the current 20,000 metric tons annually to 45,000 metric tons.

The TRQ increase is part of the 2009 memorandum of understanding between the U.S. and the EU, which ended the case that began in 1989 over the EU’s ban on U.S. beef raised with artificial growth hormones. In the MOU, the U.S. agreed to end its retaliatory tariffs against EU products as part of the agreement to allow hormone-free beef into the EU. Before imports of the hormone-free U.S. beef are bumped up enough to meet the TRQ, the EU has to approve the U.S.’s use of lactic acid as a microbial wash in beef processing. U.S. officials are continuing discussions with their EU counterparts to urge movement on this issue.

No international fallout to BSE finding One of the most important revelations of USDA’s ongoing epidemiological investigation into the case of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy discovered late last month in California is how well the U.S.’s safeguards are working, according to Farm Bureau. The affected dairy cow was 10 years and 7 months of age. The animal was humanely euthanized after it became nonambulatory and the carcass will be destroyed.

“Because of the efficacy of the BSE targeted surveillance and monitoring system, the test animal did not enter the human food chain or the feed chain,” said Kelli Ludlum, American Farm Bureau Federation livestock specialist. “Current U.S. firewalls—the removal of specified risk materials from all cattle over 30 months of age and the ruminant feed ban—are more than adequate to prevent the spread of the disease and transmission to humans.”

Most of the country’s trading partners, including Canada, Mexico and Japan—the top destinations for U.S. beef—had no reaction to the finding other than to confirm their confidence in U.S. beef.

However, Indonesia, a small buyer of U.S. beef, suspended imports.

And a pair of South Korean retailers removed U.S. beef from their shelves, although the South Korean government pledged to continue to import beef from the United States.

Trans Pacific Partnership talks continue Another round of negotiations began last week for the Trans Pacific Partnership. Participating countries Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Chile, Malaysia, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, Vietnam and the U.S. could be joined by Japan, Canada and Mexico, who have also signaled their interest. As is, the TPP would be a boost for U.S. farm and ranch exports, but the addition of Japan, Canada and Mexico makes the agreement much more encompassing of U.S. goals for agricultural trade, Farm Bureau told lawmakers last month.

By agreeing to join the negotiations under the same conditions as other participants, Japan, Canada and Mexico would have to agree that all products and sectors are on the table.

“Simply put, new entrants must recognize and accept that the TPP is a comprehensive agreement, that all sectors—sensitive or not—should be included in the negotiation and that the process will not start again from the beginning,” Farm Bureau told the Senate Finance Subcommittee on International Trade, Customs and Global Competitiveness.

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May 14, 2012

The American Farm Bureau Federation, along with 14 state Farm Bureau organizations and 16 other national and regional agricultural organizations, has filed a motion seeking to intervene in a lawsuit brought by several environmental groups against EPA. The plaintiffs want to force the EPA to require states in the Mississippi River Basin to set numeric nutrient criteria or impose its own numeric limits on phosphorous and nitrogen loads in those states.

The resolution of the lawsuit, Gulf Restoration Network, et al. v. Jackson, et al., could be significant for farmers, municipalities and others throughout the 31-state basin. Numeric nutrient standards could lead to more costly and stringent limits on nutrient runoff to waters that ultimately contribute to the Mississippi River.

Under the Clean Water Act, states may use either “narrative” or “numeric” standards as a method for determining water quality. Most states in the Mississippi River Basin use nar-

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AFBF intervenes in Mississippi River Basin case

rative standards, such as “no nutrients at levels that cause a harmful imbalance of aquatic populations.” However, if this lawsuit is successful, EPA would be forced to override existing state standards with federal water quality standards and to express those standards as specific numeric limits on nutrients.

“Setting appropriate numeric

nutrient standards is a complex and difficult scientific undertaking and EPA has proven it is not up to the task,” said AFBF President Bob Stallman. “Farmers have no reason to believe that EPA could establish scientifically defensible standards for any one state, much less for 40 percent of the U.S. land mass.”

According to AFBF, there are

limited circumstances under which the Clean Water Act allows EPA to step in the place of a state government to establish federal water quality standards.

The organization is seeking to intervene in the lawsuit to clarify those limitations to the federal District Court in Louisiana, where the case is being heard.

“Farmers and their state governments in the Mississippi River Basin have worked successfully for years to minimize nutrient runoff and will continue to do so,” said Stallman.

“But we oppose a top-down, one-size-fits-all approach.”

The following state Farm Bureaus intervened in the lawsuit: Arkansas, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee and Wyoming.

Several of the plaintiff groups previously petitioned the EPA to set numeric standards in the Mississippi River Basin; EPA denied the petition last year. The lawsuit stems from the denial of the petition.

FB urges action on bills to prevent EPA overreach Continued from page 1 over water bodies and lands and will result in more farmers and other landowners having to get permits to use their property.

In a letter to House members urging them to support the bill, American Farm Bureau Federation President Bob Stallman explained that in the organization’s view, the agencies’ proposal improperly changes the law of the land.

“The Guidance effectively eliminates the term ‘navigable’ from the Clean Water Act,” Stallman

wrote. “It dramatically expands the scope of federal jurisdiction under the act and virtually eliminates a central precept of the act, which reserves certain waters to the exclusive jurisdiction of the states.”

Allowing the agencies to pursue the Final Guidance raises three critical considerations: (1) whether the law permits such a major policy shift to be pursued through guidance; (2) whether the agencies are exceeding the authority granted them by Congress; and (3) the profound impact this policy

change would have on the economic health of the agricultural sector, which is vital to ensuring a thriving national economy that produces jobs and raises living standards for all Americans.

“The Guidance expands jurisdiction well beyond the words and intent of Congress and the limits affirmed by the Supreme Court,” wrote Stallman, who added it’s not only what the federal government is trying to do that’s the problem, it’s how officials are going about it.

“While Farm Bureau would be

concerned if the proposed policy were advanced through a rulemaking, for EPA and the Corps to implement such a significant change to the Clean Water Act through guidance is indefensible.

The issues raised by the guidance should be decided by elected officeholders on Capitol Hill. In the absence of congressional approval, the agencies should not move forward and assert federal regulatory power—especially through an informal guidance document—where Congress has not approved such a step,” he said.

AFBF conference looks at multiple layers of health care reform

Farm Bureau women make 70-plus contacts on Capitol Hill

More than 60 staff from 26 state Farm Bureaus attended the American Farm Bureau Federation’s Health Care Reform Conference, April 11-12, in Washington, D.C. Among the topics covered were the impact of health care reform on agricultural employers and small business owners and the role of state Farm Bureaus and affiliates. Additional sessions focused on health insurance exchanges, consumer driven health care and rural health care.

At the Farm Bureau Women’s Leadership Chair Conference, April 22-25, in Washington, D.C., 35 women volunteer leaders from 26 states focused on their theme of “Farm Bureau Women: Engaged • Empowered • Strong.” In addition to attending sessions on rural development, grassroots advocacy and agricultural literacy, participants got out of the conference room and up to Capitol Hill, discussing Farm Bureau’s priority issues with more than 70 legislative contacts.

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May 14, 2012

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State FB Links

After working with state officials and waterway and environmental stakeholders of all stripes to develop recommendations to decrease the impact of agricultural nutrients entering Ohio’s lakes, rivers and streams, Ohio growers are geared up to take the lead in promoting nutrient management stewardship and turning their recommendations into action.

The Ohio Department of Agriculture, Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Ohio Environmental Protection Agency and 150 farmers and agriculture-related professionals collaborated on a state-ordered report addressing increasing problems with algal blooms in the western basin of Lake Erie, Grand Lake St. Marys and other waterways.

With staff, members and board members on the report’s three working groups, Ohio Farm Bureau was well represented in the process.

“We identified the issues and made a laundry list of things to be looked at, potential changes to existing regulations and development of new programs,” said Larry Antosch, OFBF’s senior director of policy development and environmental policy. Antosch

©istockphoto.com/xeni4ka

Ohio farmers lead waterway improvement efforts

More than 100 Ohio farmers and agriculture-related professionals worked with state officials to develop an extensive list of recommendations to lessen the impact of agricultural nutrients entering the state’s waterways, like Lake Erie, shown here. was part of the research group.

Production and regulatory issues were the two other study areas.

The group’s recommendations fall into three primary categories, Antosch explained. Communications and information are one category, as is research.

“We ended up with more ques-

tions than answers,” he said. “We found a great need for on the ground research to determine what will really help.”

The third category is expanded regulations.

The report noted that dissolved phosphorous is “one of the primary culprits” of the algal blooms

Idaho Farm Bureau launches agriculture radio program

KFB holds educational meeting for farm market operators

Tennessee to phase out state inheritance tax

The Idaho Farm Bureau Federation has a new agriculture radio program, “The Ag Show.” The program is hosted by Kendall Keller, regional manager for the Upper Snake River Valley. “We communicate through print, through the TV, through the Internet, all of the various social networking, but we didn’t have a radio presence,” said John Thompson, IDFB’s director of public relations. “We know that a lot of farmers and ranchers listen to talk radio…so we thought it was a great opportunity to get our message out, too.” The program focuses on pressing agricultural issues through in-studio interviews, local news stories and national news from the American Farm Bureau Federation. The program also includes market reports and a livestock report. Keller said, “You think, ‘Where are we going to come up with enough material to do a show every single week?’ Most of the time, we find more stuff than we can put on air.” The program airs Saturdays at 7 a.m. MDT on 590 KID and 92.1 FM. The program also is live streamed at www. listen.590kid.com.

IDFB also plans to release the program as a podcast.

The Kentucky Farm Bureau Federation conducted an educational meeting for participants of its Certified Roadside Farm Markets Program. The program helps farmers market their produce, meats, value-added produce and plants. Hugh McPherson, of Maize Quest Fun Park in southeastern Pennsylvania, gave a presentation on employee management and advertising and promotional strategies. McPherson is one of the nation’s most successful market operators. The half-day program also included a panel discussion featuring state and federal officials who outlined a variety of programs available to assist farm markets. Mark Haney, KYFB president, who operates a market in Pulaski County, welcomed the group with a message about the opportunities for farm markets to succeed as well as serve as ambassadors for the agriculture community as a whole. Noting that the KYFB program has expanded to 108 markets since its inception in 1996, Haney said, “I’m so proud of this program; we can see how effective this can be.”

A bill phasing out the inheritance tax in Tennessee is on its way to the governor’s desk. The state Legislature passed the bill just before wrapping up its 2012 session in late April. Gov. Bill Haslam (R) supported the bill and is expected to sign it into law. The current $1 million inheritance tax exemption would be raised annually, beginning in 2013 at $1.25 million, and then going to $2 million in 2014 and $5 million in 2015, culminating in elimination in 2016. The Tennessee Farm Bureau Federation applauded the Legislature’s action. “This has been an issue for us for a number of years and our leadership has put in a lot of hours working to get the federal and state death tax repealed,” said Lacy Upchurch, TNFB president. “The general public is beginning to realize the importance of agriculture and food production in this country and how important it is to keep farm families on the farm working to produce that food,” he added.

“In many cases, farmers were forced to sell part of their land in order to pay the death tax, and the elimination of it allows farmers to stay on their land.” The federal estate tax exemption is $5 million, with the tax rate capped at 35 percent, though the exemption will drop to $1 million and the rate will rise to as much as 55 percent in 2013. Farm Bureau is urging Congress to eliminate the federal estate tax. The Tennessee Legislature also voted to repeal the gift tax, which taxed property and estate transfers prior to death.

State Focus

with land application of commercial fertilizer and livestock manure as a contributing source. However, the report authors pointed out that the dissolved phosphorous comes not only from agricultural sources but from others such as municipal waste, landscaping and storm runoff.

“It’s important to note that Ohio’s agricultural industry should by no means be singled out as being the only source,” the report reads. “The net productivity of the region’s agricultural sector must be maintained.”

The recommendations have been submitted to Gov. John Kasich’s office and while ODNR works on which to implement and how, there are a few that Antosch expects will be put in place.

One of those is the Fertilizer Institute’s “4R Nutrient Stewardship,” a voluntary program that encourages farmers to use the right fertilizer at the right rate, the right time and the right placement. Another recommendation that will probably make the cut is the development of a voluntary statewide “certified nutrient stewardship program” that recognizes farmers and retailers who are implementing the 4Rs. The report also includes a threetiered plan for putting the recommendations in place based on the condition of the waterway. Level 1 is “watershed in distress,” like Grand Lake St. Marys. Ohio’s largest inland lake, Grand Lake St. Marys is off-limits for many activities, including swimming and wading, because of high levels of algal toxins, according to the OEPA. Level 2 is “critical natural resource areas,” such as Western Lake Erie Watershed. The watershed is 85 percent cropland, so it transports much higher sediment than other agricultural watersheds of similar size, the ODNR says.

Level 3 is “statewide,” in other Waterway Continued on Page 8

Newsmakers Yvonne Lesicko has been named senior director of legislative and regulatory policy for the Ohio Farm Bureau Federation. Lesicko was formerly on the OFBF public policy team from 1994-1997. Since 1997 Lesicko has been director of government relations for Cincinnati Bell Telephone.

Wayne Smith has been chosen by the South Dakota Farm Bureau’s board of directors to be the new executive director, effective Sept.

1. Smith began his association with Farm Bureau as a member of the Moody County Farm Bureau, where he was Young Farmer & Rancher chairman and then elected president. He also served as a District II SDFB board member. For the past 25 years, Smith has been working at SDFB as field staff/YF&R coordinator and director of field services/women’s leadership team coordinator.

Grassroots

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May 14, 2012

Virginia farm stays on cutting edge of agriculture The Saunders Brothers orchard and farm market in southwestern Virginia is largely defined by its two separate endeavors—a farm market and tree fruit operation, and a wholesale nursery plants operation.

Two other concepts that characterize the farm: experimentation and quality.

It was through an experiment that Paul Saunders, 78, started the nursery business 65 years ago. As a young teenager, he became interested in propagating plants. He planted several boxwood cuttings in the ground and 25 of them survived.

“I was so happy!” he recalled.

“It worked. I was thrilled.”

He went away to college at Virginia Tech, earning a degree in agricultural engineering. But he always knew that he would return home to the family’s peach farm. With his father’s encouragement, he kept rooting boxwoods, trying to grow the best-quality plants and selling them. The boxwood money helped pay for his wife’s engagement ring and his first Ford. In 1961, he got a big break when he sold 1,500 boxwoods to the U.S. government. Many Americans and foreign heads of state have seen them—on the grounds of the White House.

Still, the income from the nursery wasn’t enough to feed a houseful of boys. Paul and his wife, Tatum, have seven sons.

Paul worked as a surveyor for 25 years until, one day, an encounter with a copperhead snake helped him decide to quit surveying and focus on the farm full-time.

Meanwhile, the nursery business kept growing along with the family. Saunders started growing his plants in containers, increasing production about 10 percent every year.

What started with just a few boxwood cuttings is now a successful, multi-faceted and multigeneration business. Saunders Brothers used to refer to Paul’s dad and his brothers. Now, it refers to four of Paul’s sons, Tom, Bennett, Robert and Jim, who are full partners with him.

Jim, Paul, Lyn, Tom and Robert Saunders show off some of the plants grown at the Saunders Brothers wholesale nursery, in the beautiful foothills of Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains. The family business is part of a greenhouse-nursery industry that has grown 18-fold since the 1970s and now ranks fifth among Virginia’s agricultural sectors.

Tom and his wife Lyn are both horticulturalists, and Lyn also works full time on the operation.

The farm market and nursery business employs about 70 people and sells boxwoods and other ornamental plants to nurseries from Tennessee to New England.

A multitude of perennials, annuals, woody shrubs, flowering shrubs and trees leave the farm each day. Primarily a peach farm when Paul was growing up, now the nursery comprises 75 percent of the farm, with peaches, apples, pears, vegetables and an on-farm market making up the rest of the business. A quaint, red barn, the old peach packing warehouse, houses the farm market, which is getting ready to open on June 1 for the 2012 season.

The growth of Saunders Brothers has coincided with the growth of the greenhouse-nursery industry across the country. U.S. greenhouse-nursery production was valued at less than half a million dollars in the early 1970s. Today, it generates about $9 billion in cash receipts. The industry’s growth is four times that of all agricultural commodities, according to USDA’s Economic Research Service. In Virginia, greenhouse

Waterway improvement efforts Continued from page 7 words the majority of the state that is not designated Level 1 or Level 2.

Other recommendations include: coordinating research and aligning funding streams; coordinating programmatic funding within OEPA and ODNR; coordinating communications and outreach to farmers; and providing ODA authority to better train Ohio farmers on applying commercial fertilizer.

Additionally, the report suggests expanding ODA’s regulatory authority to allow it to collect more specific geographical data on where fertilizer sales are currently made; clarifying ODNR’s authority to aggressively pursue habitual bad actors; and expand-

ing ODNR’s authority to develop nutrient management plans.

Last month, the OFBF board reviewed the report and the recommendations. Board members also voted to place OFBF in a leadership role in the promotion of nutrient management stewardship and to engage with the three state agencies as they implement the report recommendations.

“Agriculture wants to do what it can to address the issue and preferably it will be consistent with Farm Bureau policy,” Antosch said.

“We want to keep the approach voluntary, flexible and based on the best current research available. Our policy supports the development and implementation of nutrient management plans.”

and nursery production is the fifth-largest agricultural sector by value, behind No. 1 broilers, cattle, milk and turkeys.

Virginia’s poultry industry makes an important byproduct used by Saunders Farms—poultry manure as fertilizer. The plants thrive on it, says Paul.

Jim Saunders, one of the sons active in running the operation, says the farm is working to operate in an environmentally conscious way. It recycles 99 percent of the irrigation water it uses, pulled from its own ponds.

The nursery is moving toward more drip irrigation versus overhead spraying, using night-only irrigation on some plants and growing plants with similar water needs together in the same greenhouses.

And experimentation continues through a project with the University of Florida. Researchers from the school are visiting the farm to analyze how much water each plant needs and how much transpiration occurs each day, with the

Corner Post Increases in Farm Production Costs Level Off in 2012 ($ billion)

f = forecast Source: USDA, ERS; FAPRI 2012 U.S. Baseline Briefing Book

goal of giving plants no more water than they need. “Farmers are more interested in the environment than anybody,” said Paul. “We depend on it.”

The orchard and nursery together grow about 500 varieties of plants. In addition to tree fruit and 20 cultivars of boxwoods, Saunders Brothers grows other shrubs, annuals, perennials and high-end hanging baskets for those who want an instant garden.

“We’re trying to be a one-stop shop,” said Jim, whether someone needs large, foundation plants for a new home or a flat of annuals for patio containers.

The offerings at the farm store also have expanded. Now, in addition to fruits, vegetables and garden plants, consumers can buy beef from a small herd raised on the farm. Last year’s herd sold out, and Jim will increase it this year. He already has people asking him to let them know when certain cuts will be available. He says the market potential for locally grown beef is enormous.

“I like to say that it’s a complete meal at the farm market,” Jim said, “meat, vegetables, fruit and even ice cream for dessert. You can come to Saunders Farm Market and fill your plate.”

While the operation has branched out, Paul’s first love, growing the highest quality of boxwoods, is still his main focus. He works with about 60 cooperators across the U.S. who experiment with growing the over 200 cultivars of boxwood in test plots. He can answer a question from almost anyone, anywhere about which boxwoods are best for which climates.

“Quality is what we provide,” Paul said, just before turning to a landscape worker loading up plants.

“You’re getting some really nice plants, there!”