News from the Minnesota Association of Wheat
Growers for Wednesday, March 29,  2000

GOV VENTURA MEETS WITH FARMERS TO DISCUSS CHINA
MN Gov Jesse Ventura is scheduled to testify Thurs. in the House Ways and Means Committee in DC in favor of China PNTR and their accession into WTO.  Ventura met with MN farm groups last week in preparation for his meeting.  MAWG President Ron Anderson is quoted in the following release on the meeting from the MN Dept of Ag.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Wednesday, March 22, 2000

Contact: Michael Schommer, Communications Director, 651-297-1629

GOVERNOR VENTURA MEETS WITH FARMERS TO DISCUSS CHINA

Meeting held at MDA focused on agricultural trade with world's most populous nation

ST. PAUL, Minn. - Governor Jesse Ventura visited the Minnesota Agriculture Department Monday to meet with farmers from leading Minnesota farm groups and discuss trade relations with China. The message he heard was clear: the United States should pursue permanent normal trade relations with China because it will boost the state's farm economy.

China is making an effort to join the World Trade Organization, and as a part of that process the country is in bilateral negotiations with the U.S. and other WTO members. One of the pressing issues in the bilateral talks is whether the U.S. will grant China permanent normal trade relations. Currently, Congress votes to extend normal trade relations annually. On Monday, representatives from the Minnesota Farm Bureau, Minnesota Corn Growers, Minnesota Soybean Growers, Minnesota Turkey Growers, Minnesota Barley Growers, Minnesota Wheat Growers, and Minnesota Pork Producers all told Governor Ventura that Minnesota farmers will benefit by making those normal trade relations a permanent fixture. The Minnesota Farmers Union was invited but did not send a representative.

Granting permanent normal trade relations is important, the farm groups said, because it will ease China's entry into the World Trade Organization. One condition of China's entry into the WTO will be that it lower tariffs on agricultural goods such as corn and soybeans.

"This issue is very important to all of Minnesota agriculture," said Minnesota Wheat Growers President Ron Anderson. "China has 20 percent of the world's people, and only 9 percent of the world's arable acres. It's a perfect fit ? they need to import food, and we need to export food. Stepping up farm exports to China would mean higher demand for our commodities, and that would lead to better prices and more profits for farmers."

Governor Ventura told the farm groups he would travel to Washington, D.C., late next week to meet with Congress to push for permanent normal trade relations with China. He also expressed surprise that any member of Minnesota's congressional delegation could oppose greater agricultural trade with a country whose economy is expanding by 7 percent each year, and which is home to one in every five people on the planet.

"Farmers grow more than we can eat in America, and China is a hungry, growing customer," Governor Ventura said. "If we want better prices for farmers, we need to step up exports, plain and simple. It's hard for me to believe that anyone could oppose this and still call themselves a friend to Minnesota farmers."

FARMCONNECT SETS APRIL 1 SIGNUP DEADLINE

Farmers will have until April 1, 2000 to decide whether they wish to join FarmConnect, a new farmer-owned alliance being organized in Minnesota.

FarmConnect, which is structured as a cooperative, will improve the profitability of its members by identifying, creating, and meeting agricultural market needs through the development of strategic relationships with processors and end users.

Thirty-eight informational meetings about FarmConnect were held across Minnesota mid-February to mid-March.

"We're very pleased with the response we've been getting.  Now we're answering a lot of last-minute questions from producers and processing membership applications, which is growing in volume every day as we get closer to the April 1 signup deadline," says FarmConnect CEO Brent Sorenson.

Producers are very inquisitive and supportive of the effort, Sorenson says, pointing to a two-page letter written to him by a Verndale, Minn. producer as an example.  "He wrote that 'In the future, much of what we produce will be a specific product for a specific market, and that a large enough block of producers will be needed to satisfy those needs.' So he envisions exactly what FarmConnect intends to do," says Sorenson. 

Sorenson points out that the co-op will be designed to benefit crop and livestock producers, and farms of various sizes.  "That's one of the unique facets of this effort. FarmConnect will not focus on just one commodity or process. By working together through FarmConnect, farmers with as little as a few acres to thousands of acres can identify and negotiate production opportunities that are not available to them individually."

The initial membership fee to join FarmConnect is $500, and $100 annually thereafter. For more information, contact FarmConnect at (888) 654-5077 or visit the co-op's website at www.farmconnect.com, where a membership application is available online.

CONTACT:  Art Brandli, Chairman – 218-386-2083 or Brent Sorenson – 218-281-8449 (888-654-5077)

MARCH 31 DEADLINE APPROACHING FOR USDA REPORTS
March 31 is when USDA will release its important reports: Prospective plantings and Quarterly Stocks Report. March 31 is also the last day for loan eligibility and to claim LDP's for wheat, Barley and oats. In addition it's the deadline o sign up for the oil seed Payment Program.

ND WHEAT COMMISSION TAKES LEGAL ACTION AGAINST CANADA
According to a recent press release, the North Dakota Wheat Commission (NDWC) announced it is proceeding with legal action against "unfair" Canadian trading practices.  This decision came late last week after the NDWC held its executive session hearing where trade attorney Charles Hunnicutt briefed members on the economic and pricing data that has been gathered to support the case.  Without advertising the nature, timing, or parameters of the pending legal action, Hunnicutt indicated he wants to move "expeditiously".  Furthermore, Hunnicutt emphasized to producers to expect a substantial defense from the Canadian Wheat Board that will likely include attorneys, economic and public affairs consultants, and political lobbyists.  The release indicates a CWB spokesperson proclaims its continued innocence, suggesting the US has filed eight different complaints against Canada in the past, and in each case, the CWB was found to be a fair trader.  NDWC officials dispute the CWB's claim, pointing to a 1992 General Accounting Office study revealing the Canadian Government back-filled huge deficits in the CWB wheat pool account totaling $428 million in 1990 and $575 million in 1991 due to insufficient income generated from wheat export sales to cover initial payments to producers.

BRAZIL MAY BE PURCHASING MORE WHEAT IN 2000-2001
A recently released USDA agricultural attaché report indicates Brazil's wheat imports are expected to reach 7.2 MMT in 2000-01, up from 6.4 MMT in 1999-00.  Consequently, the report suggests US wheat exports to Brazil will effectively double in 2000-01 to 300 TMT from 150 TMT in the previous marketing year.  The attaché estimates an expansion of the current phytosanitary protocol to include US soft red winter wheat, which could increase US wheat exports into Brazil.  Furthermore, the attaché forecast Brazil's 2000-01 domestic wheat production at 2.2 MMT, down from 2.4 MMT in 1999-00.

FOR FARM FAMILIES, COOPERATIVE MARKETING CAN BE KEY TO SURVIVAL, SUCCESS
The keys to survival and success for many farm families may be cooperation and collective action in marketing, according to a new publication from the Minnesota Institute for Sustainable Agriculture (MISA).

Here are some reasons why acting on your own may not work as well as cooperating with others:

   * It may be difficult to maintain the steady flow of high-quality product required to establish a consistent presence in the marketplace.
   * You may not be able to take advantage of size economies in processing, transportation and advertising.
   * It's hard for one person to run a farming operation and devote the time required to develop the specialized skills and personal contacts needed for successful marketing.
   * And, if you sell your products in a market where there are only a few large buyers, you may not have the market power needed to bargain for a fair price if you act independently.

Cost of the new publication is $10 plus shipping charges.  It may be ordered from the Distribution Center, University of Minnesota Extension Service.  Call 800-876-8636 and ask for number 7539. Or, order by e-mail: order@extension.umn.edu .

ST PAUL LEGISLATIVE SESSION

2000 SESSION - EIGHTH WEEK (March 20 - 26)
By Bruce Kleven

LARGE BILLS PASSED.  This week the legislature focused its attention on passing large omnibus funding bills, including the tax bill (HF-4127), the bonding bill (HF-4078), the miscellaneous funding bill, (which includes ag and environment funding) (HF-2699), transportation funding (HF-2891), and K-12 (HF-3800).  Each of these bills was passed by the House and Senate this week, with the exception of the tax bill, which will be taken up on the House floor on Monday.

FEEDLOTS.  The feedlot rule fix bill (SF-3443, Sams) and (HF-3692, Kuisle) has moved to the House and Senate floors where it will likely be taken up this coming week.  The MPCA has raised what is called a "fiscal note" to the bill, meaning that the provisions in the bill will have an impact on their bi-annual budget and this alleged discrepancy needs to be reconciled.  The MPCA's primary fiscal problem is the fact that the bill requires them to turn permits around in 60 days.  We do not understand how this can be, since this bill only amends PROPOSED rules, not existing programs.  One solution is to take all of the people that have been writing rules for the last four years and transfer them to the permit section.  The other thing to keep in mind is the fact that Minnesota has the highest number of people in a feedlot program at 22, with North Carolina second at 21.  Add to that the 53 delegated counties - those counties that have been delegated by MPCA to carry out the feedlot program - and you have a total of 75 people already (22 plus 53), which is almost 4 times the amount of staff as North Carolina.  The legislators figured this out and have basically ignored any fiscal notes raised by this bill, in part because they find it hard to believe that even more staff are needed.

LLC BILL PASSED.  The bill to allow farmers to form limited liability companies was amended onto a policy bill on the House floor 76-52 this week.  Seven Democrats broke ranks with the party position to vote in favor of the amendment, including Bernie Lieder (D-Crookston), Rod Skoe (D-Clearbrook), and Al Juhnke (D-Willmar).  These guys took the right vote despite opposition from the Farmers Union.  The bill is in more trouble in the Senate, where Majority Leader Roger Moe (D-Erskine) has made his opposition to the bill clear, even though most rural members in agriculture districts support the bill.  We are trying to round up enough Senate votes to tack the LLC provisions on another bill.

TAX BILL.  The Senate passed a tax bill Friday that contains the $4 per acre rebate program for farmers in disaster or contiguous counties.  The disaster counties are: Kittson, Marshall, Pennington, Polk, Red Lake and Roseau.  The payment is equal to $4 per acre with a maximum payment of $5,600 for any person or married couple.  The bill also has property tax provisions that increase the rate of the education agricultural credit from 54 percent to 88.5 percent on homestead agricultural land and from 50 percent to 88.5 percent on nonhomestead agricultural land.  The House bill contains the $4 per acre rebate, but only for disaster counties (not contiguous).  This difference will be worked out in conference, with a good chance that the House conferees will take the contiguous county language.  The property tax reductions in the House bill are as follows: homestead valued between $115,000 - $600,000 goes from 0.8 to 0.5, homestead over $600,000 goes from 1.2 to 1.0, and nonhomestead goes from 1.2 to 1.0.  The House bill also increases the education agricultural credit from 54 percent to 66 percent for homesteads greater than $600,000.

WOLF BILL.  Conferees on the wolf management bill (HF-1415) were named this week.  House members are Finseth (R-Angus), Holsten (R-Stillwater), Westfall (R-Rothsay), Bakk (D-Cook), and Hausman (D-St. Paul).  Senate members are Laidig (R-Stillwater), Stumpf (D-Thief River Falls), Sams (D-Staples), Lourey (D-Kerrick), and Anderson (St. Paul).  This coming week the conference committee will meet and go over the differences in the bill.  Movement is not expected for awhile since the bills are far apart at this point.

TRANSPORTATION FUNDING.  Transportation funding bills were passed by the House and Senate this week.  Both bills make a major commitment to highway funding, but the House bill also cancels the light rail bonding authority.  This will set the stage for a showdown with the Governor.  The Governor knows the light rail project is in trouble, so he has enlisted the help of downtown Minneapolis businessmen who theoretically are close the House Republicans in an effort to save the project.  We'll see.  Conferees on the bill have already been named.  House members are: Molnau (R-Chaska), Rifenberg (R-LaCresent), Workman (R-Chanhassen), Lieder (D-Crookston), and Wenzel (D-Little Falls).  Senate members are Dean Johnson (D-Willmar), Flynn (D-Minneapolis), Kelly (D-St. Paul), Ourada (R-Buffalo), and Robling (R-Prior Lake).

COOP SECURITIES EXEMPTION.  The bill that makes four changes to cooperative law, SF-2987 (Vickerman) and HF-3903 (Westrom), is still awaiting final passage on the House and Senate floors.  The vote on the bill could come this week.

PRODUCER CONTRACTS.  The House passed the producer contract bill (HF-3534, Harder) on Monday night almost unanimously.  In the Senate, Dennis Frederickson (R-New Ulm) who is carrying the Senate companion, has concerns about unintended consequences that may arise from the bill and at this point is in no hurry to move the bill.

CHINA.  A number of commodity group representatives met with Governor Ventura this week at the Minnesota Department of Agriculture to discuss future trade relations with China.  He will be assisting the Clinton administration with this issue and requested input from actual farmers.  Pictures were taken after the meeting.