Veneman Headlines Spring Wheat Meeting

Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman keynoted the joint general session of U.S. Wheat Associates, National Association of Wheat Growers, and the Wheat Export Trade Education Committee in the groups’ spring meeting held recently in Washington, D.C.

She covered a number of topics, including projected savings for farmers from the President’s proposed tax plan, the Conservation Security Program, and the importance of trade to agriculture in the World Trade Organization negotiations, as well as regional and bilateral negotiations, and noted that nearly half of U.S. wheat acres are planted for export.

In addition to meeting with Veneman, leaders of the NAWG also met with senior officials of USDA, including Under Secretary J.B. Penn, to discuss details of the disaster assistance program. The NAWG has been urging USDA to implement disaster in a way that does not penalize growers who purchased by-up insurance products.  Specifically, the NAWG has urged USDA to 1) not penalize people for purchasing buy-up insurance, and (2) use the same prices consistently throughout for calculating the cap, indemnity, and value of the salvaged crop. Final program details are expected to be ready by mid-to-late May.

Wheat leaders also met with Chief Agriculture Negotiator Allen Johnson from the U.S. Trade Representative’s Office (USTR), as well as USTR’s Director for China. There was also dialogue with the Environmental Protection Agency, Alliance for Rail Competition, and the House Subcommittee on Conservation, Credit, Rural Development and Research.

During the spring meeting, Montana Senator Max Baucus was presented with the Wheat Leader of the Year award for 2002. 

In preparation of Congressional visits that the wheat leaders made on Capitol Hill, the NAWG prepared background papers on a number of issues, including crop insurance, disaster assistance implementation, and rail competition. Biotechnology and trade policy papers were made as joint statements with USW and WETEC, and a backgrounder on research issues was developed jointly with the National Wheat Improvement Committee. The back-grounders can be found on the Internet at http://www.wheatworld.org/html/news.cfm?ID=262

USDA Secretary Ann Veneman addressed the joint meeting of the National Association of Wheat Growers and U.S. Wheat Associates this spring.

Minnesota Congressman Collin Peterson was one of several federal lawmakers to receive the Wheat Champion Award from the NAWG this past year. The award is given annually to a select number of Members of Congress who have demonstrated support for the wheat industry above and beyond during the previous year. Pictured left to right: Richard Magnusson, MAWG VP from Roseau, Peterson, and Ag. Legislative Assistant Rob Larew. After nine years on Congressman Peterson’s staff, Larew recently accepted a job at USDA, in the Food Safety Division.