When the ASGA Board of Directors met for our annual meeting in February, they drilled deep into a number of issues that are critically important to both the short and long-term health of our industry.
Farm bill vote analysis, sugar policy implementation, appropriations bills, trade agreements, crop insurance modifi- cations, biotechnology, coalition relation- ships, public relations and political action committee priorities for the 2014 elections are just a few.
Political primaries began in early March to start positioning candidates for the November election. Feelings of fatigue and frustration by several members of Congress have caused them to retire, thus opening congressional seats across the country. Your industry leaders are looking at every one of those races and often meeting the candi- dates from both parties who are seeking election. It’s important to meet with these prospective candidates well before the election to get a clear understanding how they view agriculture and trade policy so critical to our industry. If you wait until the election is over, you’re too late.
Grower contributions to your political action committee have been absolutely critical in identifying and helping to support those candidates who support a strong agricul- tural policy. Your grower leaders are deeply appreciative of your support in making these funds available so we can tell your story about the importance of the industry and sugar policy.
We cannot thank you enough for the difference you make in this area. As the political landscape changes, we need more and stronger advocates for American agriculture. Support and generosity for your PAC is a way to make a big difference.
There is always a concern every election year about putting controversial issues on the legislative agenda, unless your party is in charge and you want to embarrass your opposition or further define your own position. With a polarized Congress and continued tensions with the White House on a variety of issues, there is likely to be very little legislation of great substance that will be addressed this year outside the appropri- ations bills. Even as we view the farm bill signing now in the rear view mirror, sugar policy must be defended from continuous attacks from opponents who are energized by our customers.
Sugar prices, as everyone knows, have fallen to 1980 price levels, and yet there are calls for changes in the policy. While our customers say they want and need our industry, they continue to pursue policy modifications that would drive many growers and processors out of business. It is clear that a dialogue is needed to find a path forward in the future to sustain a strong domestic industry. Now that a farm bill is behind us, that dialogue must begin.
On the biotechnology front, we will see a great debate this year over consumer labeling of products that contain ingredients from biotech crops. Efforts for a federal solution is in response to the state-by-state ballot initiatives that could result in a patchwork of labeling rules that creates chaos in the marketing of products within the country. Your industry will be very involved in this debate. There is clearly no difference in the sugar produced from conventional or biotech sugarbeets. To label a food product as “derived from” or “containing GMOs” when the product is the same is to create a false impression for consumers that there is something different about the food they are consuming.
Our industry has always put the consumer first, making sure that we provide the highest quality and safest product on the market, while we substantially reduce our environmental footprint and increase our long- term sustainability. This debate will be intense, and it will be long. You will begin to hear a great deal more about it in the months ahead.
The other biotech issue we are closely watching is a ballot initiative in Jackson County, Ore., to prohibit the cultivation of any biotech crops in the county. This is where some of our basic seed is produced that is eventually used to produce commercial sugarbeet seed in Willamette Valley, Ore. Various sugar co-ops and grower associations have helped fund the effort to fight this ballot initiative, and that support is deeply appreciated. Voting by mail-in ballot on the initiative begins on May 6 and ends May 20.
Finally, we want to pay a special tribute to the nine ASGA Board members who retired from the board this year. They are: Mike Wheeler (Idaho); Russ Mauch and Brent Davison (Minn-Dak); Norm Nuss (Nebras- ka); Bill Hejl, Curt Haugen and Joel Stola (Red River Valley); and Kyle Petersen and Keith McNamara (Southern Minnesota). Each of these served with distinction, and growers should be very proud of their fine work in representing them and our industry as a whole.
A special thanks to outgoing ASGA President Kelly Erickson for his great leadership over the past two years. We welcome John Snyder (Worland, Wyo.) as our new president; Vice President Galen Lee (representing the growers in Oregon and eastern Idaho), and Secretary Treasurer Mark Olson (Southern Minnesota). They will be a tremendous leadership team in the year ahead.