ponto
May 31st, 2006, 02:08 PM
U-S Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns visited Maysville today.
Johanns participated in a town hall meeting with Republican U-S Representative Geoff Davis.
Davis is running for re-election this fall against Democrat Ken Lucas.
The meeting took place at the New O-K Livestock Auction on the AA Highway.
Among those attending was John Carpenter, head of our local Chamber of Commerce.
During the opening remarks by Mike Johanns, John's cell phone rang, or more appropriately, played a tune for those in attendance. A special treat for all.
For large scale farmers, Johanns projected U.S. ag exports would reach a record $64.6 billion this year, “thanks to the president’s aggressive trade agenda.” But he argued WTO market access is “absolutely critical” with 27 percent of U.S. farm receipts linked to exports and U.S. ag productivity out pacing domestic consumption by nearly 1 percent growth per year.
“Chart that out over the next two decades,” Johanns suggested. “The 95 percent of the world’s population that lives outside the United States truly represents a part of our future. We’re striving through these trade rounds to make sure we have fair access to these markets.”
For small scale farmers, the answer for the future of their small farms will be local "in town" jobs for money and benefits in addition to working on the farm.
If you study trends in agriculture the thing that is very, very clear today is that there is a very large segment of agriculture that literally is supported by off-farm income.
They are farming very much at a break-even level.
Some years maybe make some money, some years lose some money, but if you chart their course year after year they're basically farming at a break-even level.
And there's a fair amount of that going on in the United States.
We actually have statistics that can nail down the specifics, but it's significant.
They (jobs) are critically important for the future, not only for our rural communities, but for those farm families that depend on that rural development.
That's why we're heavily invested in rural America, according to Johanns.
I want those communities to thrive and succeed. I want to see jobs created, and I appreciate the challenges involved.
But I believe very, very strongly that that's part of the economic picture of good farm policy. It just makes sense.
Johanns participated in a town hall meeting with Republican U-S Representative Geoff Davis.
Davis is running for re-election this fall against Democrat Ken Lucas.
The meeting took place at the New O-K Livestock Auction on the AA Highway.
Among those attending was John Carpenter, head of our local Chamber of Commerce.
During the opening remarks by Mike Johanns, John's cell phone rang, or more appropriately, played a tune for those in attendance. A special treat for all.
For large scale farmers, Johanns projected U.S. ag exports would reach a record $64.6 billion this year, “thanks to the president’s aggressive trade agenda.” But he argued WTO market access is “absolutely critical” with 27 percent of U.S. farm receipts linked to exports and U.S. ag productivity out pacing domestic consumption by nearly 1 percent growth per year.
“Chart that out over the next two decades,” Johanns suggested. “The 95 percent of the world’s population that lives outside the United States truly represents a part of our future. We’re striving through these trade rounds to make sure we have fair access to these markets.”
For small scale farmers, the answer for the future of their small farms will be local "in town" jobs for money and benefits in addition to working on the farm.
If you study trends in agriculture the thing that is very, very clear today is that there is a very large segment of agriculture that literally is supported by off-farm income.
They are farming very much at a break-even level.
Some years maybe make some money, some years lose some money, but if you chart their course year after year they're basically farming at a break-even level.
And there's a fair amount of that going on in the United States.
We actually have statistics that can nail down the specifics, but it's significant.
They (jobs) are critically important for the future, not only for our rural communities, but for those farm families that depend on that rural development.
That's why we're heavily invested in rural America, according to Johanns.
I want those communities to thrive and succeed. I want to see jobs created, and I appreciate the challenges involved.
But I believe very, very strongly that that's part of the economic picture of good farm policy. It just makes sense.