News Release Distributed 02/02/07
CROWLEY – The Louisiana Rice Council and Louisiana Rice Growers Association met for organizational sessions recently (Jan. 25) and to get a preview of what to expect from farm policymakers in Washington, D.C.
Reece Langley, USA Rice Federation director of governmental affairs, said work is beginning on a new farm bill. He said the 2002 farm bill is expected to save the government an estimated $25 million when it expires this year. Maintaining provisions of the existing farm bill would be the low-cost option for Congress, but that probably won’t happen, he said.
Paul Combs, USA Rice Producers Group chairman, said the proposed bill does not maintain an adequate safety net for rice farmers. Combs said the administration is recommending a lowering of loan rates and changes to the countercyclical program that would hurt rice producers.
Langley said Capitol Hill leaders are hoping to approve a new farm bill by September, but Congress required 18 months of deliberation to agree on the existing farm bill.
Several other interest groups want consideration in the new farm policy, including producers of fruits and vegetables. Others are calling for a permanent disaster fund.
Jim Wiesemeyer, a Washington, D.C., journalist with Informa Economics, said Agriculture Secretary Michael Johanns is expected to propose sweeping agricultural policy reform. He predicted that President Bush will use his veto power if a farm bill goes against the administration’s policy. But he said whatever comes out of Washington will not be a drastic change.
"They’re not going to pull the rug out from under you," he said.
Wiesemeyer said renewable fuels from crops will be the savior of agriculture and the rural economy.
He said China has become the world’s second-largest petroleum importer, and it has locked up a fourth of the world’s crude oil.
Corn is the feedstock for ethanol production now, but Wiesemeyer said he is confident that U.S. researchers will develop technology to convert cellulose into ethanol, which will be a boost to areas such as South Louisiana where corn is not widely grown. That will help sugar producers, he said, adding later that the tariff on Mexican sugar is slated to end on Jan. 1, 2008.
In the meantime, the expected increase in corn acreage this year is likely to result in fewer acres planted in soybeans, which could drive up the price of beans, now relied on for biodiesel production.
Bob Cummings, USA Rice vice president for international policy, said efforts will begin within a week to re-open the European market for American rice. Rice sales to the EU nations plummeted after the discovery of traces of a genetically modified rice variety were found last year.
Fred Zaunbrecher, president of the Louisiana Rice Growers Association and an Acadia Parish farmer, reminded producers of the Jan. 30 referendum on renewal of a 5-cent checkoff program to fund rice research, and a 3-cent checkoff for promotion. Zaunbrecher said approval of the 5-cent per hundredweight checkoff is essential to the industry’s future.
"Continued funding is vital so Louisiana growers will continue to have the necessary tools," he said.
Kevin Berken, chairman of the Louisiana Rice Promotion Board, also urged producers to renew the promotion checkoff to continue advertising rice and promoting overseas trade. Both programs were subsequently renewed on Jan 30.
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Contact: Steve Linscombe at (337) 788-7531, or slinscombe@agcenter.lsu.edu
Writer: Bruce Schultz at (337) 788-8821, or bschultz@agcenter.lsu.edu