Open Mic Replay - An Extensive Catalog of Our Audio Interviews

Description
Photos
RePlay?
Illlinois Republican Congressman Timothy Johnson was our guest on Open Mic the week of 8/1/11. His comments regarding an end to the debt-ceiling impasse serve as a reminder of the tough sales job ahead of House Speaker John Boehner. Johnson, chairman of the Ag Subcommittee on Rural Development, Research, Biotechnology and Foreign Agriculture, accuses the Obama USDA of insensitivity toward production agriculture. He reviews the farm bill safety net priorities of his constituents and also discusses GOP plans to reform the approval process for biotech crops.
Washington policymakers enter the final week before the government runs out of borrowing authority on Aug. 2 no closer to a deal to avert a fiscal crisis. On Open Mic the week of 7/25/11, Sen. Roy Blunt, R-Mo., offeed his views on the debt-limit endgame and whether its likely to contain a significant deficit reduction component. Blunt also discussed efforts to reform federal support for ethanol and emergency funding to repair levees and other flood control structures on the Mississippi and Missouri Rivers. He remains hopeful that Congress will pass a trio of free trade agreements important to farmers and ranchers prior to the August recess.
Chris Policinski, president and CEO of Land O' Lakes Inc., talks about how farmer-owned cooperatives are meeting the needs of their members and addressing growing societal demands for sustainability on Open Mic the week of 7/18/11. He reflects on Land O' Lakes long-time involvement in international development and says its important that Washington recognizes the essential role foreign assistance projects play in promoting U.S. economic growth. As a major producer and marketer of dairy products, Policinski offers his co-op's views on the future of federal dairy policy.
The 40-plus ag organizations that make up the U.S. Farmers and Ranchers Alliance (USFRA) began a collective conversation with the public the week of 7/11/11 to strengthen the image of agriculture and build trust in today's agricultural best production practices. USFRA Chairman Bob Stallman, president of the American Farm Bureau Federation, explains why the effort is needed, how much it will cost and, most importantly, how the Alliance will measure success on this installment of Open Mic.
Kika de la Garza may have retired from Congress 14 years ago but what comes through loud and clear in this week's Open Mic is that the former House Agriculture Committee Chairman's passion for farm and food policy remains as strong as ever. In fact, he eagerly accepted our interview request while lying in a hospital bed recovering from pneumonia! (In case you're wondering, he did the interview only three days after returning home.) Respected by Republicans and Democrats alike during his 32 years on Capitol Hill, de la Garza headed the House farm panel from 1981 to 1994 and had a preeminent role in writing three farm bills. In addition to some fond remembrances about those he served with, Kika talks about his formula for crafting farm legislation and how it could help today's policymakers.
The House Agriculture Committee has kicked off its work on new multi-year farm legislation with a series of audit hearings to examine programs authorized in the 2008 Farm Bill. On Open Mic the week of 6/27/11, Chairman Frank Lucas discusses how the audit hearings will help inform the committee' s drafting of the 2012 Farm Bill and his plans for field hearings. In addition to reviewing the House floor debate on the FY 12 Ag Appropriations Bill, Lucas presses the Senate to take up legislation eliminating duplicative pesticide permit requirements and he makes another plea for action on pending free trade agreements.
Feeding the 9-10 billion people who will inhabit the earth in 2050 without destroying the planet in the process will require an entirely different approach to ag production and marketing. Our guest on Open Mic the week of 6/20/11, Jason Clay, senior vice president of market transformation at the World Wildlife Fund, talks about how he's bringing retailers, buyers, producers and environmentalists together to figure out what incentives are needed to help farmers produce more with fewer inputs. Clay explains how the Conservation Reserve Program shaped his views on ag sustainability, and he has some ideas how policy makers can improve the CRP in today's challenging budget climate.
The 2011 growing season has not gotten off to the kind of start that corn producers and end-users had hoped for. USDA Chief Economist Joe Glauber joined us on Open Mic the week of 6/13/11 to break down the latest Supply-Demand report and offer his view on how long it will be before significant stock rebuilding occurs. Despite an overall strong U.S. farm sector, Glauber finds some clear warning signs. He examines the increasingly important role of crop insurance in the federal farm safety net and also discusses the volatility of food production and prices globally and what governments can do to mitigate both.
House Agriculture Committee Ranking Member Collin Peterson, D-Minn., made a return appearance to Open Mic the week of 6/6/11 to talk about the litany of challenges facing lawmakers charged with writing the next farm bill. The always outspoken Peterson, who chaired the House Ag panel during the 2008 Farm Bill debate, suggests that current Chairman Frank Lucas, R-Okla., has been dealt an almost impossible hand by budget-cutters in his own party and at the White House. Whats more, Peterson fears that ideology will trump policy in the farm bill reauthorization, leaving farmers with an inadequate income safety net. He comments on his tiff with Lucas over Wall Street reform legislation and also discusses the near-term outlook for U.S. ag exports to Cuba.
Mike Mack, chief executive officer for Syngenta, one of the world' s largest seed and crop protection companies, joined us on Open Mic the week of 5/30/11 to talk about the world' s increasing need for food and fuel and how companies like Syngenta are helping farmers produce more grain with fewer inputs. Mack explains what Syngenta wants from government regulatory agencies and he comments specifically on EPA' s review of the popular herbicide Atrazine. He addresses food manufacturers' concerns about genetically engineered amylase corn and also shares his thoughts on the responsibilities of biotechnology trait providers once their product patents expire.
Dr. Joe Outlaw, co-director of the Agricultural and Food Policy Center at Texas A&M University, was our guest on Open Mic the week 5/23/11. Established in 1983, the Center provides feedback to Congress on the likely consequences of agricultural policy changes. With the outlook for the 2012 Farm Bill as uncertain as any he's worked on, Outlaw goes public with his views on what kind of safety net is needed and whether lawmakers can make it happen. He also lists the top concerns of the nearly 100 representative farms the Center analyzes and offers some surprising insight into how theyre preparing for the future.
Agricultural economist Terry Barr, senior director of CoBank's Knowledge Exchange Division, joined us on Open Mic the week of 5/16/11 to discuss the current operating environment for U.S. farmers and ranchers and assess the ag sector's capacity to navigate coming macroeconomic headwinds. Barr, a former chairman of USDA's World Agricultural Outlook Board, offers his views on the supply, demand and price of corn, interest rates and inflation, investor interest in agriculture, and the potential impact of financial regulatory reform on agribusiness.
We continued our series of conversations with former secretaries of agriculture during the week of 5/9/11. Ann Veneman, who headed USDA during George W. Bush's first term, reflects on the key events that occurred on her watch - Europe's FMD outbreak, the first U.S. case of BSE and China's entry into the World Trade Organization - and their impacts on American agriculture. Veneman discusses what she enjoyed most about being Ag Secretary and doesn't hide her disappointment over the "struggle" to implement a mandatory animal ID system.
Sen. Ben Nelson of Nebraska, a centrist Democrat, was our guest on Open Mic the week of 5/2/11. The self-described fiscal hawk, who's up for re-election in 2012, discusses efforts in Washington to address the nation's deficit and debt crisis. As chairman of the Senate Agriculture Subcommittee with jurisdiction over the farm safety net, Nelson is positioned to play a key role in the 2012 Farm Bill debate. Unleashing the productive capacity of American agriculture, he suggests, can go a long way to ensuring U.S. energy and economic security.
Eight-term U.S. Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass., joined us on Open Mic the week of 4/25/11 to talk about the policy priorities of the unusually large contingent of northeastern congressmen on the House Agriculture Committee. McGovern, who cares "deeply" about food and nutrition issues, wants President Obama to follow through on his campaign pledge to end hunger in America, and he explains why he opposes the Administration's decision to send the Colombia FTA to Capitol Hill for approval.Eight-term U.S. Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass., joins us on Open Mic the week of 4/25/11 to talk about the policy priorities of the unusually large contingent of northeastern congressmen on the House Agriculture Committee. McGovern, who cares "deeply" about food and nutrition issues, wants President Obama to follow through on his campaign pledge to end hunger in America, and he explains why he opposes the Administration's decision to send the Colombia FTA to Capitol Hill for approval.


First Previous Next Last
Terms of Use | Privacy Policy
blog comments powered by Disqus