Cloture vote fails

No surprise this morning. From the office of Sen. Tom Harkin:


Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry, today issued the following statement after a cloture vote on the farm bill failed today in the Senate. The motion would have allowed the bill to proceed in the Senate after almost two weeks on the floor without action.

“I was deeply disappointed by this morning’s vote to block the farm bill. Frankly, I worry that there is a deliberate and orchestrated attempt to derail the farm bill. Indeed, the farm bill is just one car on a much longer train that includes the children’s health insurance bill and most of the appropriations bills. Between Republican filibusters here in the Senate, and President Bush’s barrage of vetoes and veto threats, they seem to be setting up a giant train wreck at the end of this session of Congress. Maybe, the President and Congressional Republicans think a train wreck at the end of this Congress is a good idea. But it is not in the best interests of the American people.

“It is certainly not in the best interests of the millions of Americans who have a stake in this new farm bill. This bill continues and improves farm income protection and promotes new income opportunities for farm and ranch families – with more help to dairy farmers and particularly to specialty crop producers. It boosts economic growth, jobs and the quality of life in our rural communities. It has excellent new initiatives to help restore our national energy security by promoting biofuels and other renewable energy sources and rural energy initiatives. It makes major new investments in helping farmers and ranchers conserve and enhance the resources on their land – to save soil, increase water quality, conserve wetlands and restore wildlife habitat. It will allow low-income Americans to put a little more food on the family table, and it will help improve the diets and health of school children with more fruits and vegetables.

“But, today, all of this is in jeopardy. So I am hopeful, and yet I am realistic that we must continue to fight to get this strong, bipartisan farm bill through the Senate and enacted into law. That fight will continue today, tomorrow and just as long into next month as it takes to get the job done.”

Final rule for Florida citrus

I'm sure reaction will pour in on this rule just issued by the USDA on Florida citrus shipments. Acting Agriculture Secretary said wrestling with this rule was tough. Florida figures to be more pleased than California regarding the rule:

From the USDA APHIS site:

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal Plant and Health Inspection Service (APHIS) is amending its citrus canker regulations to eliminate the pre-harvest grove inspection for all Florida citrus moving interstate. Instead, the amended regulations will require samples of each lot of citrus at the packinghouse be inspected to ensure the fruit is disease-free. This rule will be published in the Nov. 19 Federal Register.
"This regulatory change will enable Florida growers to maintain, and possibly increase, the amount of fresh citrus shipped to eligible states while providing the same level of protection against the spread of citrus canker," said Bruce Knight, under secretary for USDA's marketing and regulatory programs mission area. "To ensure Florida citrus does not ship to citrus-producing states and territories, APHIS is enhancing its enforcement efforts by conducting market surveillance and monitoring activities throughout Fiscal Year 2008."
APHIS based its decision on the findings of a pest risk analysis as well as a risk management analysis. The pest risk analysis concluded that the risk associated with the interstate movement from quarantined areas of citrus fruit that is free of citrus canker lesions is insignificant. And the risk management analysis concluded that a mandatory packinghouse inspection of commercially packed fruit provides an effective safeguard to prevent the spread of citrus canker from quarantined areas. Additionally, APHIS encouraged the public to participate in the decision-making process by providing feedback through the submission of public comments. The public comment period on the proposed rule, issued on June 21, closed on August 7.
This final rule replaces an interim rule, published Aug. 1, 2006, that required all Florida citrus fruit destined for noncitrus-producing states to originate in groves that were inspected and found free of citrus canker no more than 30 days prior to harvest. Under the previous regulations, APHIS officials conducted packinghouse inspections as an additional safeguard to ensure that fruit shipments leaving Florida were canker-free.
Under the final rule, Florida citrus destined for noncitrus-producing states must be treated, inspected at an approved packinghouse, found free of visible citrus canker symptoms and properly packaged. To further protect citrus-producing states from any potential risk of disease, APHIS will continue to prohibit Florida citrus from being shipped to citrus-producing states and territories. Fruit shipped within Florida does not require sampling and inspection as described in the final rule. Florida citrus exported to other international markets must meet all import requirements of the destination county. For additional information about citrus canker, click on the citrus canker hot issues link at www.aphis.usda.gov


From Florida Citrus Mutual:



The U.S. Department of Agriculture today issued a final rule that allows for the shipment of asymptomatic fresh citrus fruit to non-citrus producing states in the domestic market.
In addition, grove certification will no longer be required for the shipment of Florida fresh fruit. Instead, a qualified sample will be taken from each load and inspected by USDA inspectors at the packinghouse. Fruit that is found to have canker symptoms will not be shipped. About 10 percent of Florida citrus goes to fresh channels, the remainder is processed into juice.
“We applaud the USDA for making a measured decision on this rule,” said Michael W. Sparks, executive VP/CEO of Florida Citrus Mutual. “Without this type of rule we might lose the entire Florida fresh citrus industry.”
Florida packers will still not be able to ship fresh fruit to commercial citrus producing states such as California, Texas and Arizona. Sparks said Mutual will continue to work to implement a policy that eventually allows fresh Florida citrus to enter commercial citrus producing states.
To view the entire rule, visit http://www.regulations.gov/fdmspublic/component/main and search for Docket No. APHIS-2007-0022.

Conner talking farm bill

Acting Agriculture Secretary Chuck Conner visited with a few Vance editors Wednesday on his trip to address the National Association of Farm Broadcasters in Kansas City. (By the way, it was good to see Bill O'Neill, former Vance executive and publisher of The Packer, at the NAFB. Bill nows runs the NAFB.)

Conner was gracious to make time, coming straight to the Westin after touching down at KCI only 30 minutes before. It is remarkable the number of public appearances and speeches that Conner - like Johanns before him - takes on.

I asked Conner about what he tells his brother Mike, an Indiana farmer, about the progress of the farm bill and what the chances are for completion of the legislation this year. I got the idea from Conner - perhaps we should ask Mike, too - that he and his brother see pretty much eye to eye on farm policy. Conner stressed the need to change the Senate farm bill, particularly the need to strip out the tax increases and reform payment limits. With all that has gone on since Wednesday, it is hard to say if Conner is still optimistic that Congress will deliver a farm bill President Bush can sign by the end of the year.

One Washington source I talked to the other day said Conner is a "purist," a conservative product of Purdue who thinks he has got all the answers. I didn't necessarily get that feeling from our brief conversation; Conner, a veteran of many farm bills, seems eager for Congress to make the minimum changes necessary for this bill to advance. More about what Conner said about WIC, Florida citrus and trade deals in other coverage for The Packer.