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Shining Light on Farm & Food Policy for 20 Years.
Tuesday, April 23, 2024
This week's guest on Open Mic is Michel Nischan, CEO and Founder of Wholesome Wave, and an award-winning chef. The USDA announced a second amount of funding for the nonprofit to expand its healthy food initiative into areas of Connecticut and Vermont. The $500,000 was awarded through the Food Insecurity Nutrition Incentive Program, enabling SNAP program participants to buy more locally grown fresh fruits and vegetables. The program means better nutrition for consumers and increased opportunities for local farmers. In this interview, Chef Nischan shares his vision for the power of food to improve personal health, his thoughts on improving diets with fresh as well as frozen vegetables, and his ideas for the future of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
This week's guest on Open Mic is Todd Van Hoose, CEO and President of the Farm Credit Council. As the Farm Credit System celebrates its centennial this year, Todd Van Hoose says he's humbled by the achievements over the past century and excited about the opportunities in the next 100 years. In this week's interview Van Hoose discusses the troubled spots the industry is facing and says increased demands for government secured loans is a symptom of the challenges some farmers are facing. Van Hoose shares thoughts on the significance of the nation's crop insurance program, CFTC reform, the need for global trade and challenges the Farm Credit System continues to see from the community banking industry.
Jeff Nalley
Todd Van Hoose, CEO and President Farm Credit Council
This week's guest on Open Mic is Dr. Alison Van Eenennaam, a genomics and biotechnology researcher at the University of California, Davis. Her work in animal breeding was inspired by Dr. Norman Borlaug's efforts to resolve hunger issues with genetically engineered plants. Van Eenennaam believes science has been left out of the debate over how foods should be labeled saying nutritional benefits are more important than how ingredients from plant varieties were bred. Van Eenennaam notes a difference in society's acceptance of biotechnology in medicine versus that in food production where genetic engineering may provide the only sustainable solution to feeding a growing planet.
This week's guest on Open Mic is John Weber, President of the National Pork Producers Council. In this interview, Weber speaks to opportunities and challenges on the horizon for the nation's swine industry. While global demand for protein, especially pork, continues to grow, Weber and members of the NPPC adamantly support the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement to grant greater market access to growth markets. At home, Weber says pork producers face challenges from the USDA's pending GIPSA proposal, the EPA on WOTUS rules, the country's preparedness to infectious animal disease, the industry's effort to further reduce antibiotics in swine production and a domestic inventory that could soon meet or exceed the nation's slaughter capacity.
This week's guest on Open Mic is Carl Casale, President and CEO of CHS Inc. The cyclical pendulum has brought the ag industry from record highs to lows not seen since the early 1980's. In this week's interview, Carl Casale shares a view that the industry hasn't yet seen the bottom of the income swing. Despite the current challenge, Casale shares a bright view for the next generation of the industry with tremendous turnover in producer demographics. Casale says CHS is pro-trade but believes the U.S. must step up spending on infrastructure to stay competitive.
This week's guest on Open Mic is Chris Novak, CEO of the National Corn Growers Association. In this week's interview, Novak shares the global vision of the NCGA's most recent strategic planning process and the Washington legislative agenda including continued work on a national GMO food labeling standard. He also reacts to negative opinions on global trade from the campaign trail and shares why the Renewable Fuel Standard is about giving consumers better environmental choices and not limiting the auto industry's choices to meet new economic and environmental standards.
