Specialty crops funding secured in House appropriations bill
Specialty crops funding secured in House appropriations bill
WASHINGTON -- Fruit and vegetable businesses will likely keep a close eye on a USDA spending bill as it moves to the House floor in early June since it contains funds for the popular specialty crops program and delays country-of-origin labeling for meat products.
The produce industry has been pushing Capitol Hill lawmakers to approve the $54.5 million annual authorization for the newly passed Specialty Crops Competitiveness Act, which would help the industry enhance the competitiveness of each state's commodities through grants to state departments of agriculture. The money can be used to fund research and development projects, marketing programs and new production technologies.
But the current budget climate makes it difficult to get any new money in this year's spending bill, especially to start new programs, said a congressional staffer for Rep. Sam Farr (D-CA). Mr. Farr succeeded in writing $7 million into the nearly $17 billion agriculture spending bill, which passed the House Appropriations Committee on May 25.
The staffer said that the $7 million is likely to survive House and Senate consideration because it was packaged as one of the chairman's provisions.
But even if the money survives, the $7 million would have to be spread very thin. Under the bill, each state would receive a minimum of $100,000, which would eat up $5 million of the program, and another $2 million would be allocated based on last year's value production.
"Is it our dream amount? It is not," said Kathy Means of the Produce Marketing Association.
But Ms. Means said that at a time when Congress is rarely appropriating new money, "It says a lot about the respect of the industry on Capitol Hill. Even as a symbol of the specialty crops' rising influence, it is still great, she added. The program crops have had the lion's share of limelight, and it takes time to build influence.
"This is a great day for our industry, said Tom Nassif, president of Western Growers Association in Newport Beach, CA. "It marks not only the beginning of implementation of the historic Specialty Crop Competitiveness Act, it also signals the continuing recognition of the critical importance of the fresh produce industry to agriculture and the nation's economy.
Mr. Nassif said that it shows that "policy makers understand the tremendous value of this sector of agriculture and will take the steps necessary to protect and foster this industry. The timing of this funding is also perfect with the recent renewed focus on nutrition and the role of fruits, nuts and vegetables in our diet.
If the bill passes, the $7 million would serve as a down payment as lawmakers set their sights on the upcoming farm bill debate.
Another measure in the fiscal 2006 spending bill is the one that would grant the meat industry a delay in complying with the country-of-origin labeling law, leaving just fruits, vegetables and peanuts to meet the September 2006 deadline.
The House Appropriations Committee approved a provision that would delay mandatory country-of-origin labeling for meat and meat products for the fiscal year, but it is still unclear whether it will be stripped during the House floor debate or expanded to include other commodities.
Introduced by Rep. Henry Bonilla (R-TX), the COOL amendment would ban the USDA from spending fiscal 2006 funds to write regulations for the labeling program, and would direct the USDA to study the implications of origin labeling on the meat industry. While PMA wishes the meat industry well in pursuing a COOL delay, Ms. Means said, "Our eyes are still on the prize of overturning the current mandatory COOL law and making it a voluntary, market-driven program.
The produce industry has been pushing Capitol Hill lawmakers to approve the $54.5 million annual authorization for the newly passed Specialty Crops Competitiveness Act, which would help the industry enhance the competitiveness of each state's commodities through grants to state departments of agriculture. The money can be used to fund research and development projects, marketing programs and new production technologies.
But the current budget climate makes it difficult to get any new money in this year's spending bill, especially to start new programs, said a congressional staffer for Rep. Sam Farr (D-CA). Mr. Farr succeeded in writing $7 million into the nearly $17 billion agriculture spending bill, which passed the House Appropriations Committee on May 25.
The staffer said that the $7 million is likely to survive House and Senate consideration because it was packaged as one of the chairman's provisions.
But even if the money survives, the $7 million would have to be spread very thin. Under the bill, each state would receive a minimum of $100,000, which would eat up $5 million of the program, and another $2 million would be allocated based on last year's value production.
"Is it our dream amount? It is not," said Kathy Means of the Produce Marketing Association.
But Ms. Means said that at a time when Congress is rarely appropriating new money, "It says a lot about the respect of the industry on Capitol Hill. Even as a symbol of the specialty crops' rising influence, it is still great, she added. The program crops have had the lion's share of limelight, and it takes time to build influence.
"This is a great day for our industry, said Tom Nassif, president of Western Growers Association in Newport Beach, CA. "It marks not only the beginning of implementation of the historic Specialty Crop Competitiveness Act, it also signals the continuing recognition of the critical importance of the fresh produce industry to agriculture and the nation's economy.
Mr. Nassif said that it shows that "policy makers understand the tremendous value of this sector of agriculture and will take the steps necessary to protect and foster this industry. The timing of this funding is also perfect with the recent renewed focus on nutrition and the role of fruits, nuts and vegetables in our diet.
If the bill passes, the $7 million would serve as a down payment as lawmakers set their sights on the upcoming farm bill debate.
Another measure in the fiscal 2006 spending bill is the one that would grant the meat industry a delay in complying with the country-of-origin labeling law, leaving just fruits, vegetables and peanuts to meet the September 2006 deadline.
The House Appropriations Committee approved a provision that would delay mandatory country-of-origin labeling for meat and meat products for the fiscal year, but it is still unclear whether it will be stripped during the House floor debate or expanded to include other commodities.
Introduced by Rep. Henry Bonilla (R-TX), the COOL amendment would ban the USDA from spending fiscal 2006 funds to write regulations for the labeling program, and would direct the USDA to study the implications of origin labeling on the meat industry. While PMA wishes the meat industry well in pursuing a COOL delay, Ms. Means said, "Our eyes are still on the prize of overturning the current mandatory COOL law and making it a voluntary, market-driven program.
