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Release No. 0440.05

**of Connecticut Farm Bill Forum with Under Secretary for Natural
Resources and the Environment Mark Rey and Moderator Nancy Bull,
Associate Dean for Outreach and Public Services, University of
Connecticut Berlin, Connecticut - October 1, 2005**

LETTER FROM REP. ROSA DELAURO AS READ: The Berlin Fair is one of our
state\'s finest fall attractions, and I have no doubt that you will
enjoy your time spent here today. I certainly appreciate your making
yourself available, and I believe today\'s discussion will bring you
greater insight into what the upcoming Farm Bill means to Connecticut
and our agricultural industry.

The coming Farm Bill debate will be extremely important for our state
and our country. As the ranking member on the Agriculture Subcommittee
of the House Appropriations Committee, I have a special interest in the
Farm Bill. The actions that the authorizing committee, the Agriculture
Committee in the House, are very important for me as one who has to lead
the way on funding for these programs.

I will await a report on your comments today and plan to seek additional
input from all those concerned about the issues covered by the Farm
Bill. Since I was first appointed to the Agriculture Subcommittee, I
have made it a priority to meet annually with farmers from across my
district and in the future I hope to expand those meetings across
Connecticut. Though my schedule does not allow me to accept every
invitation I receive, I hope that all of you know that my door is open
as consideration of the Farm Bill begins in Congress and for any other
matters of importance to you.

I believe that in this next Farm Bill we have an opportunity to increase
attention to issues of importance to Connecticut and New England in
general. We made a start in 2004 and 2005 to enhance development of our
specialty crops here and across the country. Personally, I believe there
will be more attention to the changing face of agriculture, the
increasing importance of sustainable agriculture, the growth of consumer
interests in organic crops and animals and/or products grown or raised
with fewer additives or chemicals are some of the areas I believe may
get more justifiable attention.

Research on agricultural issues, nutrition, damaging plant and animal
diseases, and many other topics is very important in Connecticut. We
have a robust group of agricultural scientists in our state, both at the
New Haven Experiment Station and at the University of Connecticut. The
potential development of zoonotic diseases, our security for plants,
animals and humans who eat them or are around them is an emerging issue
of great substance. Research is an important title in the Farm Bill, and
determined by the leadership of the United States in the food and fiber
markets of the world.

Connecticut farmers and rural communities also understand the critical
nature of our environment as well as open space and water conservation.
And we can also benefit from some of the Rural Development programs in
Connecticut.

Finally, nutrition programs are very critical to Connecticut. The Food
Stamp and WIC programs are reauthorized in the Farm Bill. The link
between our farmers and direct consumers is growing and I hope that the
Farm Bill will pay attention to building that relationship because it
can promote access to fresh, nutritious high-quality food for everyone,
from schoolchildren to our seniors.

In closing let me say that the Farm Bill is an enormous undertaking
covering as it does everything from authorizing these nutrition programs
to credit, crop insurance and international trade as well as all the
topics previously mentioned.

Today I am sure you will not be able to discuss all of them, and that is
why I will look forward to learning your priorities for Connecticut. So
I cannot be with you this morning, please remember that my door is
always open and I hope that you will not hesitate to contact me. My
deepest thanks to all of you for participating in today\'s discussion.
Your invaluable insight both allows myself and the U.S. Department of
Agriculture to better meet your needs. I look forward to continuing our
work together.

With my very best wishes and warmest regards.

Sincerely,

Rosa L. DeLauro

Member of Congress

\[Applause.\]

MODERATOR: Thank you so very much for being with us and for once again
reinforcing the strong support that we have from the Congresswoman for
agriculture and the food system. She plays a very critical role. It\'s
my pleasure now to introduce to you Mark Rey, Under Secretary for
Natural Resources and the Environment at USDA. Secretary Rey oversees
the Forest Service and the Natural Resource Conservation Service.

One of the reasons I think it\'s so critical that Secretary Rey has come
to be with us today is of course in Connecticut NRCS and the Cooperative
Extension System have a very strong partnership as we work with private
landowners. But also in Connecticut as all of you know we\'re 58 percent
forested and 90 percent of that forestland is privately held. That makes
us very unique as a state compared to some of our other states where
most of the forestland is publicly held.

Prior to being appointed under secretary in 2001, Mr. Rey served as
staff to the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. He\'s
worked for the American Forest and Paper Association, an industry group
with which Cooperative Extension has had partnerships across the
country. And he\'s also, some of you will appreciate this more than
others, but he\'s also a native of Ohio, which of course as I am I find
a very special bond when you have buckeyes that come together. He is a
graduate of the University of Michigan and he\'s with us today to listen
and to hear what you might have to say.

Mr. Secretary, welcome to Connecticut.

\[Applause.\]

SEC. MARK REY: Thank you for that kind introduction, Nancy. As I look
out at you it occurs to me that a few of you are wondering whether I\'m
a bit overdressed, and you\'re probably wondering who provided me the
staff advice to wear a suit to an agricultural fair. But I actually am
wearing a suit for a specific reason. And that reason goes back to the
very first months of my tenure in this position. After I\'d been in the
position for only two months I agreed to participate in a field trip in
the Central Valley of California to look at some conservation practices
that NRCS and some of our cooperators had put on the land in the Central
Valley.

I arrived at the location to start the trip at the appointed time and
unfortunately things were late getting started, so our area
conservationist who was running the trip was quite excited about the
opportunity to run this trip said, you know we\'re running a little bit
late, so why don\'t we all get in the buses and we\'ll do introductions
at the first stop? So we all dutifully filed on to the buses, drove to
the first stop, and we were so excited about launching into the
description of the conservation practices at the first stop that we
forgot all about introductions, talked his way through the first stop
and said, my goodness, we\'re even later now. Let\'s get to the second
stop.

So we went on the buses and drove to the second stop and he started
talking at the second stop. Then I noticed as I was sort of hanging back
at the fringe of the group that there was one old fellow, a grower in
the Central Valley, who\'s craning his neck, looking around, obviously
searching for something. Since I was on the fringe of the group, he kind
of ambled up to me and said, \"So which one\'s the new knucklehead from
Washington?\"

\[Laughter.\]

I concluded then that if I wore a suit at every event there\'d be very
little likelihood I\'d ever be asked that question again because
everyone would know that only a knucklehead from Washington would wear a
suit at an agricultural fair. So that\'s why I\'m wearing a suit today.

But I\'m glad to be here. I\'m interested in hearing what you have to
tell us, and I\'d like to start by thanking the Berlin Lions Club for
making this opportunity available and Dave and Paul Alkas for hosting us
in this almost brand new barn.

It\'s my pleasure to be here today on behalf of Secretary of Agriculture
Mike Johanns to hear directly from you, Connecticut\'s farmers and rural
residents, about issues of concern. In preparing for the development of
the 2007 Farm Bill Secretary Johanns announced in June the first of what
would become a nationwide series of Farm Bill forums to be held across
the country. That first forum was held in Nashville, Tennessee, and
we\'ve conducted 31 more and have planned several additional forums
through the end of this year.

Various under secretaries like myself will also be conducting forums
such as this in the hope that no place is left unheard as we develop
this next Farm Bill.

Before we get too far along with this forum we have a message from the
person who asked Secretary Johanns to solicit ideas from as many people
as possible while conducting these listening sessions. And so if the
powers that be in charge of the audio equipment will queue up the tape,
we\'ll hear that message now.

PRES. GEORGE W. BUSH: Thanks for letting me speak to you at this Farm
Bill Forum. America\'s farm and ranch families provide a safe and
abundant food supply for our people and for much of the world. You
represent the best values of America \-- stewardship of the land, hard
work and independence, faith, service and community.

Mike Johanns understands the importance of America\'s farmers to our
country, which is why I chose him to lead our Department of Agriculture.
I\'m proud of his work, and he will lead our efforts on the next Farm
Bill. Secretary Johanns and I believe the first step in this process is
to ask each of you how today\'s Farm Bill is working and how it can be
better.

As we look to improve America\'s farm policy, we will continue to focus
on the following goals.

See, America has about 5 percent of the world\'s population which means
95 percent of your potential customers are overseas. So one of our goals
must be to ensure that America\'s farmers and ranchers have access to
open, global markets.

A second goal is that we want future generations to have plenty of
opportunities to go into agriculture.

Thirdly, we need cooperative conservation that encourages good
stewardship of our land and natural habitats.

We also need to act wisely in delivering help to our producers. And we
must promote cutting-edge agricultural products and research.

Finally, we must ensure a good quality of life in rural America. The
Farm Bill is important legislation that meets real needs. The next Farm
Bill should further strengthen the farm economy and preserve this way of
life for farmers and ranchers of the future.

Hearing your advice is an important step toward meeting these goals. I
thank you for all you do for our country, and thank you for listening.

SEC. REY: Well, as you can tell from that message our President is
determined to see the comments you offer today be used while formulating
what the next Farm Bill would look like. As Nancy mentioned in my
introduction, I\'m the under secretary for Natural Resources and the
Environment with jurisdiction over the USDA Forest Service and the
Natural Resources Conservation Service. My career has been spent working
on conservation, and as you may know the Farm Bill is one mechanism that
helps us do just that.

The previous Farm Bill was considered landmark legislation for
conservation funding and for focusing on environmental issues. The
conservation provisions of that bill have assisted farmers and ranchers
in meeting environmental challenges on their land. That farm bill also
simplified existing programs and created new programs all seeking to
enhance the long-term quality of conservation on working farms, ranches
and forestlands.

What goes into a Farm Bill, what will go into the 2007 Farm Bill, will
have long-lasting effects on our nation\'s natural resources, and
that\'s why we\'re here today, to hear your thoughts, comments and
concerns on what should be included in the next Farm Bill.

To that end Secretary Johanns developed six specific questions that we
are seeking answers to today. The first question relates to challenges
for new farmers. How do we prepare farm policy to provide a future for
new entries into the agricultural community?

Our policies as they are developed through the 2007 Farm Bill should
welcome the next generation of farmers and avoid unintended consequences
like higher land prices that discourage new entries into agriculture.

Second question relates to how do we stay competitive in a world
marketplace? Over 27 percent of the cash receipts from agriculture come
from abroad. That\'s a very, very large piece of all farm income across
the country. We must remain competitive in domestic and global markets
in order for American agriculture to succeed.

The third question relates to farm program benefits. Is the current
distribution system the most effective way of distributing the benefits?
Benefits should stabilize farm prices and income. The current programs
and crop insurance is a good example, and we\'ve had some conversations
about that already, distribute assistance based on past and current
production levels. Some would argue that the structure of those programs
favors larger farms over smaller ones.

The fourth question relates to conservation, the one that I\'m most
familiar with. How do we frame our conservation policies in a way that
provides for cooperative conservation?

I, the Secretary and the President continue to believe that our farmers
are the best conservationists in the nation. Some suggest anchoring farm
policy around conservation and the tangible benefits that are produced
by cleaner air and water and less-developed landscapes.

The fifth question relates to rural economic development. How can
federal rural and farm programs provide effective assistance in rural
areas? If you look back at Farm Bills of the past, there wasn\'t much
there relative to rural economic development. In the 2002 Farm Bill it
was a pretty significant piece. The reason for that is that farming and
rural America were once considered synonymous, but the demographic and
economic characteristics of some rural areas have changed, and some
believe that farm legislation should invest more in the infrastructure
of rural America generally.

And then the last area, the last question, is the expansion of
agricultural products, markets and research. We have great resources at
our disposal at USDA. What are we doing right with those resources in
terms of research? And if we\'re not doing the right things, what should
we be doing instead? American agriculture is changing rapidly. And some
say our agricultural policies should do more to help develop new
products and markets.

Those are the six questions that we\'d like you to focus on, but we\'re
obviously eager to hear about anything you want to share with us today.
We think there will be enough time to hear from all of you, but if we
run out of time or you simply think there\'s something you forgot to
say, please know that you can always go to WWW.USDA.GOV and click on
Farm Bill Forums. Please know that the comments submitted on the web in
writing or voiced here today are all given the same weight and the same
exact amount of study and analysis.

Finally, before asking questions today please state your name, city and
state and your involvement in agriculture in connection to the Farm
Bill. Also speak as loudly and as clearly as possible so our
transcribing can accurately capture your thoughts. The entirety of
today\'s proceedings will be transcribed so we\'ll be able to study it
as we begin to work on the 2007 Farm Bill.

Lastly, I\'d like to offer a specific message for the younger people
here today, the Future Farmers of America and 4-H group and the other
youth groups. You are the reason for this tour. I hope the ideas and
advice we receive today pave the way for your future success in
agriculture.

I will assure you that we will conclude in plenty of time for you all to
be where you want to be at 1:00. After careful study I\'ve concluded you
are probably equally divided between Yankees and Red Sox fans. As I grew
up near Cleveland, Ohio, I have no dog in your particular fight except
that as I am confident the Indians will take two from the White Sox. All
I hope is whether it\'s the Yankees or the Red Sox, one team takes two
of the next two games because that will assure that the Indians will
make the playoffs.

So with that I thank you for being here today, and I look forward to a
productive discussion this morning. I\'ll give the podium back to Nancy.

\[Applause.\]

MODERATOR: Mr. Secretary, as a Cincinnati Reds fan I\'m a little taken
aback by the Cleveland Indians, huh? I\'m not sure if we\'re in the
Yankee territory or the Boston Red Sox territory. On the border? Okay,
got it.

As the secretary said, we will focus on six areas of concern in the Farm
Bill today. Those are just briefly new farmers, competitiveness in a
global market, farm program benefits, conservation goals, rural economic
growth and expansion of agricultural markets.

One of my roles as moderator is to see that everyone has a chance to
speak and that all issues are brought to the table. We are asking that
you try to keep your comments to two minutes. I do have a timing system
up here that will tell me when you start and when you stop, but
unfortunately you can\'t see where you are in that process. So at the
end of two minutes I will stand and ask that you bring your remarks to a
close.

I have been asked to remind you also that according to the guidelines
for the hearing we don\'t expect any inappropriate outbursts. As staid
New Englanders I don\'t think that would be a problem, but we do ask
that you don\'t applaud or cheer or stand up and rally in the middle of
anyone\'s comments.

We are asking you though because this is being recorded and being
transcribed that you come to a mike to speak. There is a mike in the
middle and there\'s a mike on either side. And as the forum progresses
if you wish to speak just please go to the mike and stand and wait to be
called on.

We do have a roaming mike if you would like to speak and are unable to
move to the mike easily. Just raise your hand, and we\'ll have someone
bring a mike to you so that you can speak where you\'re seated.

As the secretary mentioned, you can go to WWW.USDA.GOV and look at the
testimony both given today but also given at the other Farm Bill
listening sessions. If you haven\'t read that, you might find it quite
interesting because the issues sometimes are similar but yet different
across the country. You may also send written comments by mail if you
prefer or there are two boxes on the back picnic table marked USDA if
you\'d like to leave a copy of your testimony today.

So without any further comments we would like to invite our two youth
who have been asked to speak first at this forum. This is a tradition of
the listening sessions, which really reinforces that the future of
agriculture is with those of our young people. And so we are pleased
today to have with us, and I think I will ask both of our young women to
come forward at this time so that we will introduce them and then they
may speak. First will be Elyse Brodeur who is chapter president of the
Southington High School FFA Chapter. She is a senior this year. And
speaking second will be Rebecca Harrison, vice president of the
Litchfield County 4-H Beef Club and is a junior in high school this
year. So Elyse?

MS. ELYSE BRODEUR: In my almost four years of agricultural education
I\'ve been faced with the challenges or working with a narrow definition
of \"agriculture.\" The speech I wrote about the issues we have with
over-vaccination of household pets and the future of animal health was
labeled \"not agriculture.\" Therefore my question to you is, how can we
encourage ag innovation when a large number of businesses are excluded
by USDA policy?

My next question to you is, how can we change this?

The definition of agriculture under the Farm Bill must include emerging
industries. Students and others who wish to pursue a career in
agriculture need to be made aware of the broad range of opportunities.
We will not have growth or development in this industry if all of our
resources are directed into the same commodities as they were in the
past. Education is the key to continual strength of American
agriculture. Will the education I\'m receiving today be applicable under
the Farm Bill? The instructions students receive in the classroom is far
more advanced than what the bill covers now, and far more advanced than
it ever has been in the past.

For instance, I consider myself very lucky to receive the type of
education I do in this prestigious industry. However I wonder where the
agricultural leaders of the future will gain knowledge if there is no
emphasis on continuing education.

As an agricultural student and a prospective ag educator it is very
discouraging to believe that the USDA would leave out any area of
agriculture. The point of the education we are receiving is to promote
the growth of the industry. I can only hope that the Farm Bill will be
open to new advancements, not just to tomorrow but also to five and 10
years into the future.

Thank you for your time and consideration.

MODERATOR: Thank you, Elyse. Rebecca?

MS. REBECCA HARRISON: I am Rebecca Harrison from Southbury. I\'m 16
years old. I\'ve been involved with 4-H for nine years and FFA for three
years. I\'m an honor roll student and attending the voc ag program at
Nonnewaug High School. I\'m currently the vice president of my 4-H club
and involved in team leadership programs for the state of Connecticut.

Seven million children nationwide are involved in 4-H; 55 percent of
these children aged 7 to 19 are from major metropolitan areas, suburbs,
and inner cities. These kids have after-school activities to attend to,
homework that needs to get done, or animals that need to be taken care
of or fed. These 4-Hers care about their grades and how their animals
are looked after.

I began in 4-H at 7 years of age learning leadership, citizenship and
life skills. The USDA support in the Farm Bill will enable 4-H to
continue to provide positive youth development during out-of-school time
and empower youth to become effective leaders and contributing members
of society.

4-H empowers youth to reach their full potential working and learning in
partnership with caring adults through organized clubs, camps and
after-school programs. The essential elements of 4-H are belonging,
independence, mastery and generosity. These elements are achieved
through initiatives that focus on healthy lifestyles, science,
engineering and technology and civic duty.

In all programs, 4-H regards youth as capable individuals who contribute
in meaningful authentic ways in the organizations and communities where
they live, learn, work and play.

The need for science, engineering and technology education is essential
for tomorrow\'s leaders. I have attended conferences and workshops that
have provided access to the latest technologies, advances in
agriculture, life sciences, family and consumer resource management,
human development and nutrition because of 4-H and its connection to
U-CONN.

4-H is such a part of U-CONN that they have a flavor of ice cream called
\"empowerment,\" mint ice cream empowered to 4-H. The farm policy should
support the agricultural end of life that I live. I hope to take over my
family farm and get involved in an agricultural career.

I attend Nonowag High School. This may sound like an ordinary school to
you, but to me it sounds like so much more. This is not only a regional
high school but is the home of the \[inaudible\] agriscience program.
This program does not just offer tractor-driving courses but it offers
animal husbandry, veterinary science, horse management, conservation,
floraculture, agriculture mechanics, and agricultural productions.

Each course covers a different area of agriculture. Each course has
something that interests someone. I think that each course is
interesting and has something to do with what I want to do in the
future.

Just like any other person in the country, I want to feel like I have
led people I know into a better lifestyle. Anyone that wants to
eventually lead needs discipline. Science, engineering and technology is
a huge part of being a leader. I want to help animals get better to have
better medications to get well faster. Without my agricultural
background I will not be able to get into college so that I can start my
career goals.

To be able to participate in the career I want to get into I need to be
able to be proficient in science. This is not just biology and
chemistry. This is agricultural science as well. I need to know the
latest advances in technological science and know how to use the
equipment provided. I also need to know certain types of engineering so
that I can use the information it provides me with to use in my career.
Here are three things that you will use in agriculture that you can
learn in high school and college. This proves that agriculture is a very
needed career in life.

4-H has provided positive youth-adult relationships. I am still in
contact with most teen-age role models from when I started 4-H. They
have now finished college and are starting their careers. Yet they
continue to provide mentoring to myself and other 4-Hers. 4-H has
provided me with confidence, competence, character and caring. I have
learned through positive relationships with adults, peers and older peer
role models. I have learned life skills and leadership.

I love school. I love 4-H. I love FFA. But most of all, I love working
with my cattle every day and developing new skills and perfecting old
ones. I don\'t know what I\'d do without my cattle or if I didn\'t have
something to do after school. I hope that what I have said to you today
will help you realize what the youth of America needs. Please continue
to provide funds for 4-H programs and support the positive influences on
youth today.

MODERATOR: Thank you, Rebecca.

\[Applause.\]

One of the real strengths of both our FFA and 4-H programs is the
ability to teach youth to do public speaking. And I think it\'s always
heartwarming to see the skills that young people learn through these
educational programs and are so willing to share. So thank you to both
of you for your time and the effort you put into your remarks. I think
if you look at some of the other listening sessions you\'ll be proud of
what our youth have just said, so thank you very much.

At this point we\'re going to move to Commissioner Prelli who would also
like to make some comments. Our Commissioner of Agriculture, Phil
Prelli.

COMMISSIONER PHIL PRELLI: Secretary Rey, for the record I am Philip
Prelli, commissioner of Agriculture, state of Connecticut. It is my
pleasure to be able to provide testimony today, and thank you for coming
to Connecticut. I will tell you have greater courage than me; I never
mention the Yankees, Red Sox feud in Connecticut as a politician, and
they already know who the knucklehead from Connecticut is after six
months in the job.

As I am sure you are aware Connecticut has participated in many of the
programs, which have been part of the previous Farm Bill. Over the last
10 years the state has averaged approximately \$1 million each year in
the Farm and Farm/Ranch Protection Program. What makes this even more
impressive is that we have been able to leverage that with our state
money, municipal money and not-for-profit organizations to preserve
large quantities of farmland in our state.

Partnering with all these groups has helped make your effort more
successful. Equal successes can be also shown with the EQIP and the
AFO-CAFOS strategy grants as well as crop insurance, the WIC and senior
nutrition programs, Farm to School, specialty crops, farm export, and
many other cooperative agreements.

This partnership between your agency and mine is a vital ingredient
supporting Connecticut farmers. This would also include the regional
work with which your agencies assist us. The farmers in our region would
be at a severe disadvantage without the expertise of such agencies as
NRCS, the Extension Service, FSA, FAS, APHIS, and the other affiliated
agencies.

As we look forward to the 2007 Farm Bill we know that we will have to
seek changes. In the ever-changing agriculture environment, issues will
have to be addressed differently and sometimes at greater speed than is
currently available. Who knows how the existing world trade discussions
will affect farm subsidies? We cannot afford to have this money leave
the agriculture arena.

This is not a major issue in the Northeast, but we must find new and
unique ways to funnel that money to our farmers to ensure their
viability.

We should look at using more block grant programs by defining those in
such a way that they can be changed to address the pertinent issues of
the day. Making the application and reporting process less bureaucratic
and easier to follow would be a positive step. There are times now when
it is questionable on whether it worth the personnel time needed to
apply and report on the grants for the amounts received. Block grants
would allow us flexibility to meet the needs of our constituents and
ensure the money reaches the farmers.

We must also continue to address the environmental needs of our farmers
as we have done under the past bill with such funds to address the CAFO
needs with the clean water. We must now look to the new clean air
concerns and help our farmers address this need.

As this is not fully defined as yet, we will need to be again flexible
in the way we approach this issue.

In Connecticut and the Northeast specialty products and niche markets
are a major part of our agricultural venue. These include but are not
limited to such products as greenhouses and nurseries, broadleaf
tobacco, organic farming, mushrooms, shellfish, poultry, maple syrup and
other specialty crops. Many of our farmers sell their products at local
farmers markets and on their own farms. The Connecticut-grown brand is
respected and adds value to our products as we saw earlier today.
Support for these programs should also be included in the 2007 bill.

The dairy industry is still a major concern in Connecticut and the
Northeast. The Northeast Dairy Compact helps us to ensure the dairy
remains viable and that local products were available to our region. I
understand it will be difficult to reinstate the compact, but I need to
put a plug in for it anyway. It was a program that helped our farmers
with milk taxpayer dollars. The MILC program has helped some of our
smaller farmers, and I would ask at a minimum that this be continued.

In closing let me again thank you for being here. It is our
responsibility to bring forward programs that not only assist our
farmers and preserve agriculture but to make them easily accessible and
flexible to meet their needs. Thank you very much.

\[Applause.\]

MODERATOR: Thank you, Commissioner Prelli.

We\'ll now move to those of you who wish to speak. We will start the
timer. We did ask people to sign in but we won\'t go in that order
necessarily. As you wish to speak please feel free to move toward one of
the open mikes. I will start the timer as you start to speak, and when I
stand again you\'ll know that your two minutes are up. So who would like
to go first? Go right ahead, sir.

MR. DAVID PENNY: Good morning. My name is David Penny. I\'m the first
selectman of the town of Somers, tenth generation farmer I guess if I
count correctly in North Central Connecticut. Under Secretary Rey and to
all who helped organize this opportunity to speak to the Farm Bill,
thank you very much for the opportunity. If indeed it\'s the first
listening forum relative to the Farm Bill that\'s happened in
Connecticut, well better late than never.

I would hope that it\'s indeed a sign that there is a growing awareness
that farming in Connecticut, farming in New England, is a significant
part of agriculture in the United States but that it also is an endeavor
that has its own unique characteristics and requirements. And the Farm
Bill needs to incorporate and be mindful of that uniqueness.

Local is the issue for Connecticut agriculture, and it is the
opportunity for local land use, conservation and environmental issues,
to be most cost-effectively addressed when we can support local farms.
The best opportunity for local farms is producing products that can be
marketed locally. The program we\'re just witnessing this morning for
the local milk is a fine example. It is the most as I said
cost-effective way of keeping farmers on the landscape. Farmers in the
rapidly urbanized landscape are one of again the most effective ways of
supporting the conservation and environmental goals that we all hold.

One of the things I find from my perspective as a local administrator is
that the regulations that is often out there produced at the local level
is contrary and provides barriers to local farmers. USDA can help
provide education and technological understanding that will enable local
regulators to more effectively accommodate both their goals for health
and land use controls and support for local farmers at the same time.
Thanks again for your time.

MODERATOR: Let\'s agree to hold applause on speakers and we\'ll wait
until the very end. So thank you very much.

MR. GORDON GIBSON: Secretary Rey, for the record, I am Gordon Gibson,
legislative director of the Connecticut State Grange. I\'m also speaking
this morning on behalf of Connecticut Farmland Trust, a private
nonprofit land trust dedicated to preserving farmland in Connecticut;
and the Working Lands Alliance, a coalition of approximately 130
organizations concerned with preserving farmland and food in
Connecticut.

Many people think of Connecticut as an industrial state and not an
agricultural state. We are a small state. Our entire state is smaller
than some of the counties out through the Midwest and the Great Plains.
But still we have a tremendous agricultural industry. Agriculture
contributes \$2 billion annually to Connecticut\'s economy and provides
50,000 permanent jobs, mostly for low and moderate-income wage earners.

We have some of the best farmland in the world. I didn\'t\' say the
United States\-- I said the world. But we are rapidly losing it
irretrievably to development. The Department of Agriculture and the
Connecticut Farmland Trust along with many local land trusts are
preserving what we can. But still we are losing 8,000 acres a year or
approximately 8 acres for every acre we preserve.

Our biggest problem to preserving land is money. And we would ask and
hope that the 2007 Farm Bill will provide more funds to preserve this
land.

A second issue to us is food security. I got in the habit of eating many
year ago as you can tell by my waistline, and I don\'t intend to break
that habit. But for the first time in the history of the United States
in 2005 we will be a net food importing country. And the Northeast
including Connecticut is very close to that. Some of our food is
traveling 1,500 miles to reach us. And with the increase of cost in
transportation and what will happen if some of the foreign countries
we\'re bringing our food in form a food cartel similar to the OPEC oil
cartel?

I will wrap up very quickly by saying Connecticut people want local
products. We need programs that will help the smaller states with local
programs. One size will not fit all. Thank you.

MODERATOR: Let\'s move to the microphone over here on this side by the
tractors.

MS. LITA GOYA (sp): Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. My name is Lita
Goya, and I am the active member of 4-H. I am hoping to attend
Mattabessett FFA program. This morning I am going to tell you a story
about my family farm. Most people would assume people who live in
Connecticut are not what you would call average farmers. But words
cannot describe my farm. With about 100 acres of land and all the
animals you could possibly imagine we also let FFA members come to our
farm and walk away with not just 1,000 hours but the memory of good
times and years of agricultural experience of showing and working with
livestock.

One of the FFA members graduated high school and is now attending the
University of Oklahoma. With all the years that she worked on our farm
she received a state proficiency award and is now looking forward to
being a large animal vet. One of the newest FFA members who is working
on our farm as well as my best friend who once didn\'t know how to ride
a horse or show a sheep is now showing and fitting sheep, goats, rabbits
and horses. Nicole is also on the livestock judging team and has the
highest amount of hours in her class.

Nicole and I were in the Middletown transfer helping our friend. Nicole
is hoping to become an all-around vet and attend Tulsa University. I am
planning to follow my lifetime dream of becoming a horse trainer and
having a farm of Suffolk sheep and Brown Swiss dairy cows. I am the next
generation of agriculture.

MODERATOR: Thank you. Let\'s move over here to Chris.

MS. CHRIS COFFIN: Hi. For the record I\'m Chris Coffin. I\'m the New
England director for American Farm Land Trust. I spend a lot of time in
Connecticut. Secretary Rey, I wanted to address two issues that you
raised. First, one of your questions, which were let\'s, can we talk
about policies that will welcome new entry into agriculture?

From our perspective the importance of access to affordable farmland is
key in Connecticut and throughout New England. Because of farm values in
the state and elsewhere in New England it is simply not possible for
many young farmers to get into the business of farming unless we manage
to keep farmland both available and affordable. That is why we consider
state farmland protection programs to be key, and for that reason why
the Federal Farm and Ranchland Protection Program is so important.

On that front in terms of the cost we can have farm and ranchland FRP
projects in Connecticut that cost millions of dollars and last year FY
\'05 Connecticut got \$3 million in FRPP which in our mind can really
accomplish very few projects.

When you look at then sort of and as you mentioned you said there are
groups out there who are interested in anchoring farm policy around
conservation. AFT is certainly one of those organizations. We believe
there are great many more needs in terms of conservation that can also
provide more income support for farmers.

On that front just two quick points. Regional equity in the 2002 Farm
Bill has been critical for this part of the country. It has doubled
conservation program funding in New England and in Connecticut. There is
still a backlog of \$327 million worth of projects and farmers who have
applied \-- (audio break)

It has tremendous potential we believe, but again we see the concept of
green payments as one as Gordon Gibson says one size does not fit all.
We need to have a program. It\'s not working yet in New England for a
variety of reasons, but we need to try and make it that it can suit the
needs of all size and types of farm operations.

MODERATOR: Thank you, Chris. Let\'s go right over here.

MS. NICOLE MCCAY (sp): Good morning. My name is Nicole McCay. I attend
the Matabasset (sp) Chapter of the FFA. My goal is to be involved in
agriculture today and tomorrow. Currently I have attended many local
agriculture fairs showing sheep. I have learned that agriculture is a
very important industry. I am glad that I can learn about agriculture
through the FFA and 4-H. We need to continue the support so I can
continue to be involved in agriculture as adult. Thank you.

MODERATOR: Thank you, Nicole. Let\'s go this side.

MS. MELISSA SPEAR (sp): First I think you should increase the amount of
time allowed in these forums to three minutes because everyone seems to
have difficulty with two.

MODERATOR: To clarify \-- thank you for bringing that up \-- we will
have time when everyone has spoken who wants to speak, we will then open
the mikes for more general discussion and we can have more time at that
point.

MS. SPEAR: Great. Thank you. My name is Melissa Spear, and I\'m here to
speak on behalf of the Trust for Public Land, a national nonprofit land
conservation organization with offices in 27 states including one here
in Connecticut. Our mission is to preserve the recreational agricultural
and open space values of land for the benefit of private citizens, local
communities and the public. And we achieve this goal by partnering with
states, counties and towns as well as other nonprofits \-- and of course
the NRCS through the Farm and Ranchland Protection Program which is a
very important program for us.

Over the last four years we successfully completed or are in the process
of completing over 25 FRPP projects across the nation including 13 here
in New England. We\'d like to express our appreciation to you, Under
Secretary Rey, and to NRCS for your consistent support for the FRPP over
the last four years. Nationally the infusion of relatively consistent
levels of federal Farm and Ranchland Protection funds has leveraged more
than 2.5 times that amount in state and local and private funding. And
through this process a uniquely American way of life has been protected
and important agricultural lands have been preserved.

I\'d like to talk a little bit about an ongoing project here in
Woodstock, Connecticut\-- protection of Valley Farm that I think really
illustrates the way that FRPP funds can be leveraged by New England\'s
agriculture communities to help maintain their viability. It\'s
representative of many of the farm protection projects here in New
England.

As towns in the region have watched their farmland communities shrink
and the economics of farming in the region have become increasingly
difficult, many have looked for ways to provide tangible support to
farmers who wish to continue their agricultural enterprise and
contribution to the local economy.

The town of Woodstock for example has appropriated local tax dollars to
a land acquisition fund for the purchase of development rights on prime
agricultural land. The funds that small communities are able to bring to
bear for agriculture preservation are not enough on their own to meet
demand. For example, the value of development rights on the 100-acre
Valley Farm alone are estimated at \$800,000, and real estate prices
continue to rise. Therefore the success of this project is dependent
upon funding partnerships between NRCS, the state Department of
Agriculture, and the town of Woodstock. It would not be a successful
project without the NRCS funds. And I\'ll submit the rest of my
testimony.

MODERATOR: Thank you, Melissa. Appreciate that.

MR. JAMES CIPRELLI (sp): Good morning. My name is James Ciprelli. I\'m
the chairman of the Kings Mark Resource Conservation and Development
Council, an area here in western Connecticut. I\'m also the president of
the New England Association of RC&Ds. There\'s 15 RC&D councils in the
six New England states. I also sit on the National Board as a result of
that presence of New England.

The nation\'s 375 RC&D Councils are a proven delivery system for USDA
programs and services. Resource Conservation Development Councils play
an important role in the conservation, economic development and
utilization of the natural resources. The public-private partnership
between RC&D Councils and USDA\'s Natural Resource Conservation Service
Resource Conservation and Development Program is based on the assumption
that local citizens with help provided through the USDA can develop and
carry out an area plan that identifies and addresses local needs while
at the same time providing an return on every federal dollar invested in
the program.

The upcoming Farm Bill provides a unique opportunity to more directly
tie councils to delivery of the full compliment of the USDA programs and
services in our local communities. Recent decisions by USDA have limited
the ability of the federal RC&D coordinators to fully assist the
councils. Authority needs to be clarified in the Farm Bill to give them
the flexibility they need to access USDA programs so they can continue
to assist the local volunteer councils.

The Farm Bill also provides the opportunity for the USDA to recommit to
fully funding the federal investment in the public-private partnership
so that RC&D Councils could continue to improve quality of life in local
communities through conservation and economic development as they have
for the past 40 years. the RC&D Councils are willing to provide
additional guidance in the continuing Farm Bill discussions, and you\'ll
see that and hear that throughout the rest of the hearings you\'re going
to have.

On behalf of the two RC&D Councils in Connecticut I\'d like to present
you with a T-shirt from our Tour the Farms road race that we had. It\'s
a bike race we had in the Litchfield Hills and also in Northeast
Connecticut.

If you look on the back you\'ll see 32 sponsors and partners that we
developed for one small event.

MODERATOR: Thank you, James. We\'re going to move over here. David?

MR. DAVID BULL: Good morning, Secretary Rey. I am David Bull. While we
live in Columbia, Connecticut, we operate a 200-year-old grain farm in
southern Ohio. I\'ll address questions one, three and six.

The long-term objective of federal U.S. farm policy must be maintenance
of a viable food production capability and food security. It must ensure
young people have the education and access to capital to be able to
produce across sufficient quality land that\'s available to grow this
food.

The Farm Bill is only a tool to make this happen.

My first point is to encourage expansion of Section 12-381, the Farmland
Protection Program. We sold a conservation easement of our Ohio acreage
to a trust, specifically to block urban development and perpetuate local
farm capability. Federal policy should emphasize major expansion of
easement instruments to enable production soil preserves for our future
national security.

Second, Tom Friedman recently told us the world is flat, that global
consumers will purchase most efficiently where production costs are
lowest. There are no more artificial barriers. The 2007 Farm Bill should
facilitate expanded international trade in concert with Departments of
State and Commerce. Food must replace widgets as a key export base to
overcome the burgeoning trade deficit. Legislation must demand strategic
agricultural trade, not perpetuate myopic protectionism.

Third, land grant universities were created to champion education for
the common man. Regrettably these same universities have regressed into
research with results archived and isolated. I urge you to reinstate the
function of the Cooperative Extension System as a key transfer element
of knowledge back to the rural and urban population.

Rural development cannot progress without educated people.

I appreciate the opportunity to make these points and encourage your
consideration of the points we\'ve raised.

MODERATOR: Thank you. We\'ll move to the center.

MS. ANN COLBY: Yes, thanks. My name is Ann Colby. I\'m with the
Southbury Land Trust. And I just want to talk to you, about another
specific illustration of the way the conservation programs in the last
Farm Bill were successful and why we need to build on those in the next
Farm Bill.

In Southbury we have been \-- our farm preservation program has just
been tremendously aided by specifically FRPP. To give you an example,
the three years prior to the 2002 Farm Bill the land trust in the town
of Southbury preserved one farm. In the three years following the 2002
Farm Bill we\'ve worked on five successful farmland preservation
programs projects and four of them were a success solely because of
funding we received through FRPP. We would not have been able to protect
those farms without it.

As a result of the success and the terrific education program that the
local NRCS has provided to farm owners, we are getting an increased
demand constantly from more farm owners in our region and from the next
generation of farmers who are looking for less expensive land to lease.
And yet we in our town are looking at a window of opportunity perhaps
five to 10 years to preserve the remaining farmland in our area due to
two factors\-- the ageing of the current farm owner generation and the
rising cost of land.

So farm families in our town are facing tough decisions they need to
make now. And we need to be there to partner with them to offer them the
resources for more and better choices. And I just want to reiterate the
calls for more funding for Connecticut in the next Farm Bill for our
conservation programs. They are working, they\'re efficient, they\'re
effective, and we hope we can build on those past successes. Thank you.

MODERATOR: Thank you, Ann. We\'ll move to the mike.

MR. MICHAEL LUTZ (sp): My name is Michael Lutz. I\'m from Haddam,
Connecticut. I have a small farm. I\'m also representing the Connecticut
River Coastal Conservation District of which I\'m a board member. In my
district the largest issue is pressure of development on farmland. There
are two farms right next to me. One recently the farmer was deceased and
it looks like the heirs are not going to be able to hold out against
development. And the farm right next to them is already been split once
and the farmer there is of the older generation. What happens next on
his farm is of great concern to our town also. So the federal funds to
preserve these farms are very important.

The second item is technical support. I would like to support NRCS and
the technical support that we get from them at the district and as a
property owner the direct help that I can get from the NRCS. Thank you.

MODERATOR: Thank you, Michael. We\'re going to move over here to Anna.

MS. ANNA LEGRAND (sp): Good morning. My name is Anna Legrand, and I
represent the Connecticut IPM program. Today I\'ll be addressing topic
number four, achievement of conservation and environmental goals.

The Integrated Pest Management Program, or IPM program provides
information and training on environmentally sound pest management
tactics. Our goal is to help growers with their pest management needs in
a way that protects the environment and also ensures the profitability
of their operation. Through our partnership with NRCS we have been
providing IPM training to growers who qualify to the Environmental
Quality Incentives Program or EQIP. This training is delivered through
weekly visits to the participating growers. The IPM staff helps the
grower in dealing with any current pest problems as well as providing
training on how to carry out seasonal long IPM for a particular crop.

Our presence at the EQIP sites not only benefits the participating
growers but we also take information gathered there and relay it to
other growers around the state.

For example the fruit IPM educator Lorraine Lors (sp) uses weather data
collected at a growers\' site to predict the occurrence of applescott
(ph) infection. Then through several communication means she alerts
growers about the likelihood of applescott infection and when treatments
are justified for this problem. Two key aspects of IPM are the emphasis
on tactics that prevent pest problems and the ability to predict when
pesticide applications are justified.

With this information we are able then to cut down on unnecessary use of
pesticides. We are currently training 14 growers who have qualified to
the EQIP program. This program just started last year, and we continue
this year again. These growers will receive IPM training for three years
covering a variety of crops including vegetables, field corn, small
fruit and treefruit crops.

We are also expanding our services to (unclear) growers that qualify to
participate in the EQIP program. The partnership with NRCS and the
funding received through EQIP has supported our IPM program and most
importantly has provided an incentive to growers to try new IPM
strategies. We are thankful for the support, and we hope that the next
Farm Bill will continue to sponsor programs like EQIP, which benefit
Connecticut growers and our environment. Thank you.

MODERATOR: Thank you, Anna. We\'re going to move to this gentleman and
then to the middle.

MR. RUSSELL ROBINSON: Name\'s Russell Robinson, director for New Haven
County Connecticut Sheep Breeders and member of the American Lamb Board.
My statement today is, I don\'t expect an answer right away, anybody to
jump up and say anything, but I know it\'s a big concern not only here
in Connecticut but throughout the entire nation. Animal identification
is a big issue with a lot of people across the nation today.

To my knowledge still in Connecticut and New England is not entirely
successful and it\'s our hope that you would continue to support this
until all the problems in this area have been hashed out. I understand
that due to the vast economical advantage that cattle have it\'s highly
possible that within a matter of one or two years the privatization of
cattle ID will be highly successful. But due to the controls and the
value of smaller livestock such as poultry, sheep and goats, horses,
their movement also needs to be tracked. And to my knowledge is nowhere
near successful currently. I don\'t believe that privatization at this
time is currently feasible. I think I believe I speak for everybody in
saying that all eyes are on the federal government to help us work this
problem out.

MODERATOR: Thank you, Russell.

MR. LEE GRANTIS (sp): My name is Lee Grantis. I live in Bethany,
Connecticut. I\'m the coordinator for the greater New Haven Clean Cities
Coalition, which is a Department of Energy program that advocates the
use of alternative fuels as outlined in the Energy Policy Act of 1992.
And that includes biomass fuels.

I\'m here to talk about biomass and transportation as well as heating
fuels. I don\'t know if you know this or not, but one major supplier
here in Connecticut was going to put 5 percent of bioblend fuel in his
heating fuel this year to sell. And the coalitions around the United
States are getting asked repeatedly what can we do with the energy issue
that\'s going on right now? Both transportation-related and
heating-related, especially here in the Northeast coming this winter,
and we\'re all saying biofuels are the fastest thing you can do to put
into effect to alleviate the problem.

Also the price due to the Energy Policy Act and other legislation has
brought the price down where it\'s equal to diesel fuel and/or heating
fuel costs. So in our work we are finding a real disconnect between the
numerous agencies and the federal government to make this happen,
especially the economics of it.

I\'m talking about the Department of Energy as well working with the
Department of Agriculture, Department of Transportation, and the EPA and
probably Department of Commerce too.

We need your help in any bills to include agriculture bills and of
course the energy bill did its part to coordinate these activities so it
will make it economically feasible to produce our own fuel here in the
United States. This is not going to alleviate the problems we have, but
it sure is going to make a dent in it. Anything we can do to cut down
the requirements for fuel from foreign countries which are limiting our
freedom today would help. So I ask for coordination help.

MODERATOR: Thank you, Lee. Marian, before you start I just want to
remind anyone in the audience if you\'d like a microphone brought to you
so you might speak from your seat, please indicate by raising your hand
and we\'ll accommodate that.

MS. MARIAN STANNARD (sp): Thank you. My name is Marian Stannard from
Durham, Connecticut. I\'d like to address the farm policy as a consumer.
Two of our biggest issues in the first five years, the 21st Century,
have been homeland security and the cost of fuel for transportation. And
farm policy can address those two concerns.

In my opinion homeland security is not just making sure our food supply
is safe. It\'s also making sure the population has access to that food.
Having grown up in suburban Connecticut and lived here all my life, I
can picture many parts of the country where the public feels cut off
from their food source.

Twice in the last few years a major interstate highway has been shut
down in the state of Connecticut diverting truck traffic completely
around the entire state. How many of those trucks were our Connecticut
food supply? What can the Farm Bill do to ensure that more food is
produced and stored in the state of Connecticut? Farmers cow is a great
example of how the public knows there is milk produced in Connecticut so
the next time there\'s a storm and we had that run on the supermarkets
like we always do that empties the shelves of milk hopefully there\'s
Connecticut milk there. We\'re not waiting for those trucks to come in
from out of state.

What about produce? Why is all our produce brought in from other parts
of the country except for the season Connecticut-grown farm market
season? Why aren\'t there more places to store produce in Connecticut?
What better way to use a lot of our vacant industrial buildings than to
find a way to support their transition into a storage facility? We\'re
growing a tremendous amount of produce in Connecticut, and once that
first frost hits it\'s all got to be shipped back in.

Another thing to consider is how many other products could be grown in
Connecticut if farm policy didn\'t just support volume? Maybe there were
policies to consider, is there a way to say there should be an incentive
to grow near a population center? Obviously farmland preservation helps
that. We need to make sure that farmland preservation also includes ways
to make sure that if you have high costs of production you still can
grow in Connecticut even though you may not have 1,000 acres to produce
potatoes\-- produce them on a smaller plot and find a way to store them
here in Connecticut so the product is close to the consumer.

MODERATOR: Thank you, Marian.

MR. JOE WELCH: Hi. My name is Joe Welch. I\'m a member of the Shelton
Land Conservation Trust. And today I\'m here in support of any continued
funding and educational programs for invasive plant management. We began
managing one of our parcels, 65-acre site, that was an old farm and it
was overgrown with a lot of invasive plants.

And through the NRCS and a few other sites on the Internet we were able
to educate ourselves and get some guidance and eventually funding
that\'s really making a difference opening up about 20 acres or so
that\'s going to be left as fields, areas for field habitat, once a
year. We\'d just like to thank the efforts and mechanisms for funding
that allow us to do this because before that there was a lot of just
volunteers and you could spend a lot of time out trying to get work
accomplished that with a little bit of funding you can bring in
specialized equipment and really get a head start.

And what we have found is, we learned from our experiences that we\'re
actually in the process of trying to educate others and pass along this
information. Thank you again and hopefully the funding will be there in
the future.

MODERATOR: Thank you, Joe. You do remind us that the Farm Bill is the
authorizing mechanism, and Rosa DeLauro sits on the Appropriations
Committee which is the funding mechanism, and that\'s an important
partnership. And Rosa\'s staff, Bill Hendricks, is still in the back of
the room if you came in late and wanted to speak with him.

BLACKIE: Good morning. Secretary Rey, it\'s reassuring to see a
left-hander on the stage. Everyone knows left-handers are right-minded.
You\'ll notice I\'m holding my pen likewise.

SEC. REY: Just as long as you don\'t see my penmanship.

BLACKIE: I have that problem too, so. As a farmer I want to be very
competitive in our domestic market, but I think domestic markets means
different things to different people. To me the domestic market is for
all the consumable food and plant products, products people in this
state like to buy from local farmers.

The Farm Bill must have a much stronger presence in the horticulture and
specialty crops area. The fact that I have to compete with the Canadian
market that seems to be able to get their crops down here to Boston, New
York markets so much cheaper than I can grow it suggests we have a very
serious problem.

We must develop more programs that encourage production of most of the
local grown food and plants. I\'d also like to address the USDA office
closure. I want to speak in opposition. As I understand it, Connecticut
has been asked to close a disproportionate number. I\'m opposed to that.

MODERATOR: Thank you, Blackie. Nate.

MR. NATHAN CUSHMAN: Under Secretary Rey, I certainly appreciate this
opportunity to raise an issue before you. I\'m Nathan Cushman, a dairy
farmer from Franklin, Connecticut. And once again I really appreciate
the opportunity to speak before you and impress that you have time in
what I know is your very busy schedule to be here.

But I would like to talk about the Environmental Quality Incentive
Program which we have signed up for, signed up for previous years. I
think it\'s essential to help livestock producers come into compliance
with the permitting process. I also have a few suggestions that from our
experiences with the previous EQIP program and what we\'re going through
currently that might be helpful.

We had signed up in February of 2003. We operate on three different
locations, very, it\'s a complicated program with a number of practices,
and we were outsourced to a private engineering firm. Took two years for
them to come up with a plan. In the meantime the costs of all the
practices have escalated way beyond what we had budgeted, and also in
the meantime standards have changed to make what we had budgeted not
doable at the current costs.

So I think that if we had good success working with our conservation as
previously the current firm is really not familiar with agriculture and
the structures that we\'re involved with. So again I would really
support continued funding. I think it\'s essential and I think we should
look at working with our own NRCS staff and once we start a program we
stay with existing standards rather than continuing to revise them.

MODERATOR: Thank you, Nate. We\'ll move to this one. Roy?

MR. ROY JEFFREY (sp): Good morning, Mr. Under Secretary. My name is Roy
Jeffrey from Storrs, Connecticut. I\'m water quality coordinator for the
University of Connecticut Extension System and also a member of the
board of directors for the Connecticut Farmland Trust.

My comments focus on the conservation and environmental goals question.
The 2002 Farm Bill authorizations and subsequent appropriations in the
research and education title, particularly the Smith Lever and Section
406 line items enable CES to work with producers and community officials
in the area of water quality. I\'d like to highlight two of those areas.

First, we work closely with dairy producers to protect water quality
through the implementation of nutrient management plans, plans that are
based in part on research conducted at UCON. A key to success here can
very much be attributed to having a very close working relationship as
we partnered with NRCS and the EQIP program. The net result of course
has been farmers being able to continue to be the good stewards of the
land that they manage while maintaining a profitable operation.

Secondly, we worked closely with municipal leaders through our
nationally recognized NEMO program and our Green Valley Institute
Program to better protect natural resources and water quality. This
educational work has been especially useful for communities located in
the urban-rural fringe of Connecticut where municipal leaders are now
better able to implement ways to protect valuable natural resource areas
including farmlands.

Speaking of farmlands, I should mention that the Farm and Ranchlands
Protection Program has been very effective in helping public and private
entities across the state leverage some of the funds they need to
protect Connecticut farmland. And increased opportunity to protect
farmland in turn serves to benefit our educational efforts through the
NEMO and Green Valley Institute programs.

As we look to the future it\'s clear that agriculture and associated
land uses will need to play a strong role in the stewardship of our
natural resources, especially cleaner air and water. Research and
education are important to achieving success. There may be a need
however to look at innovative ways to fund Cooperative Extension work in
this area putting opportunities for new and strengthened relationships
with other agencies. Thank you very much.

MODERATOR: Thank you, Roy. Paul.

MR. PAUL MILLER: Yes. I am Paul Miller, a dairy farm from what they call
the Quiet Corner in Connecticut. We milk 600 cows in a family operation.
I\'d like to thank Mr. Rey for coming today.

And what I\'d like to say is that agriculture in Connecticut is still
very alive. We\'re still worthy of federal dollars. And I think the
Farmland Preservation Program is helpful. I think there\'s some key
roles that need to be looked at when funding dollars to preservation
programs and trusts. I don\'t want to damper the thought of having land
in trust, but I think that number one the threat is from houses. Number
two, it\'s from landowners that take their land and decide they don\'t
want agriculture on it; they\'d rather have lawns and pretty green
grasses to look at because they don\'t understand agriculture.

I think number three that a lot of the land trusts are heavy on
preserving nature and put restrictions on that land that inhibit the
ability to farm and farm profitably. Some of that might be wanting to
save certain species of birds and therefore not allowing a farmer to cut
the land until after August when it\'s not worth anything.

I\'d also like to speak briefly on the MILC program. I thank it needs to
be able to handle family farms such as ours and not be restricted to
small single-family member farms. And it\'s important to include
multigenerational farms in the MILC program, and I think that\'s one of
my key gripes.

I think as this morning we were part of a recipient of the Farmers Cow
and value- added grants and I think value-added grants are something
that are key to keeping a point of origin and local produce in the state
of Connecticut. I think the continuation of value-added grants is very
key. And again I would like to thank you for coming to Connecticut and
listening to us here.

MODERATOR: Thank you, Paul. We\'re going to take one more person to
testify, and then we\'re going to take a brief break and we\'ll
reconvene following that. So Marilyn, if you would please?

MS. MARILYN ALTOBELLO: Good morning, Secretary Rey. My name is Marilyn
Altobello. I\'m an associate professor in the Department of Agricultural
and Resource Economics at the University of Connecticut. My comments
pertain to competitiveness and economic viability of Connecticut
agriculture.

The Agricultural Risk Protection Act of 2000 has provided for the Crop
Insurance Education in targeted states program. Since 2001 USDA Risk
Management Agency has partnered with the Connecticut Department of
Agriculture and the University of Connecticut Cooperative Extension
System to provide crop insurance and risk management education to
Connecticut agricultural producers and their advisors. The overall
objective of this effort is to improve the economic viability of
Connecticut agriculture and the financial well being of its producers.

The Connecticut Farm Risk Management Team along with the statewide
advisory group that was formed for this project has conducted
educational programs for the past four years and a fifth year has been
recently approved. Educational topics have included crop insurance,
marketing, farm business planning, estate planning and farm transfer,
tax planning and debt management, use of pesticides, farm labor issues,
and working with local officials.

Delivery has been through a variety of means including workshops,
one-on-one advising, presentations at commodity group meetings, a
website and direct mailings. We\'ve reached over 3,500 producers and
agricultural advisors each year and about 400 per year have attended our
programs.

The Farm Risk Management Team has received positive feedback and many
comments from producers have benefited from our programs. They and
others have provided good suggestions for future programs so there exist
many opportunities to expand our offerings. Therefore, it\'s important
that the funding for the crop insurance and risk management education
program be continued beyond the current five-year commitment and that if
possible additional funds be allocated to these efforts in the future.

Thank you.

MODERATOR: Thank you, Marilyn. At this time we will take a 10-minute
break. We\'ll reconvene at 10:40. If you\'d like to provide additional
testimony at that time if you\'ve not yet spoken and would like to
speak, please go to the mikes as we come back together. Once everyone
has testified we\'ll go to more general discussion time. So thank you,
and we\'ll see you in 10 minutes.

MODERATOR: Best way to get the crowd back is to just start. We will
remind you that if you choose to speak you should go to a microphone and
when recognized identify your name, your town and your relationship to
agriculture, conservation and/or conservation.

We did think that perhaps Congresswoman Johnson might be able to come
this morning. She had a last-minute conflict, but the congresswoman who
of course is an advocate for agriculture was kind enough to send to Mel
Gaitling (sp) right over here to be with us. And so thank you very much
for coming and sampling some of that excellent Berlin home cooking.

Okay, we\'ll start with the center mike, please.

MS. KIM STONER: My name is Kim Stoner. And I work at the Connecticut
Agricultural Experiment Station in New Haven. People tend to forget that
there is another agricultural experiment station, which is not
affiliated with the land grant university system in this state. And I
also am the vice president of the Northeast Organic Farming Association.

And in my professional work I want to say that I do research and public
service to farmers in sustainable agriculture. And I would like to speak
in support of the sustainable agriculture research and education program
and the very tiny but very important organic agricultural research
programs in the USDA. Both of those are very important in providing a
research and education base to help move agriculture towards more
sustainability both environmentally and economically.

And then I would like to say that in my experience with the Northeast
Organic Farming Association we find that there are a lot of people who
are very interested in farming in Connecticut and who are facing
tremendous challenges as new farmers. Access to farmland, as many people
have already spoken about today, is a critical challenge. But another
challenge is a comprehensive strategy to get farmers successfully
established on preserved farmland.

There is a fair amount of farmland preserved in one program or another
which is not being very actively farmed up to its potential. Many of the
new farmers did not grow up in farming families, and they need
assistance in developing realistic production plans, marketing plans,
and business plans, and an opportunity to get experience implementing
those plans as apprenticeships or on incubator farms.

And there are a number of successful incubator farming programs around
New England and apprenticeship programs, and it\'s also very important
to support the community food security programs that provide local
links, ways for people to buy food from their local farmers through
farmers market programs and community food security programs.

MODERATOR: Thank you, Kim. I just remind you, if you do have written
comments you\'d like to leave, and we would encourage that, there are
boxes on the back table. Or if you want to go to the website,
WWW.USDA.GOV, you may also add your comments in that manner.

Melinda?

MS. MELINDA NAPLES: My name is Melinda Naples. I\'m a new dairy farmer
from Durham, Connecticut, and I am 22 years old. I want to state that
because that was one of my first points is that getting started in
agriculture, especially production agriculture, as a younger person is
very difficult now.

One of the things I found made it difficult is there being a lack of
programs out there to start up young farmers that don\'t have a lot of
established credit. And also one thing I think would help this is loan
officers. I went through FSA for my loan.

One thing it would help for us to come into the new era of agriculture
which is selling locally-grown food, especially in the Northeast, is
educating more people through FSA and other lending agencies to let them
know what the local markets in the Northeast are since we\'re very
different from the rest of the country. It\'s not such large-scale
commercial production.

The excuse I got for not lending to me for processing my own dairy
products was that they don\'t know that market of the locally sold
products. I say that is an excuse because I think it is. I think it\'s
something we need to improve on to educate these officers.

One thing I think we really do need to support and realize is that New
England and the Northeast is very different from the rest of the country
in agriculture, and it\'s going very much towards your locally grown and
selling local products. That\'s something I want to do eventually is
process my own milk and possibly make cheese and other dairy products.
We need to support and realize in the Farm Bill that the Northeast is
different. We\'re not all large-scale commercial production and to
support that locally grown.

MODERATOR: Thank you, Melinda. If I could step out of my role as
moderator and tell you, my role with the Cooperative Extension System,
when Melinda came to my office maybe five years ago now and said,
here\'s my business plan, I\'m going to start a dairy farm in
Connecticut at a time when many dairy farms were going out of business,
it\'s a true pleasure to see someone who\'s actually living what she
wanted to do and making it work for her. So thank you for coming today,
Melinda.

Erica?

MS. ERICA FERN: Thank you. I\'m Erica Fern with Connecticut Farm Bureau.
I\'m also a start-up farmer in West Suffield, Connecticut. I\'d like to
recognize today and reemphasize the diversity of Connecticut
agriculture. We\'re here in a new building today that the Berlin Fair
has put up to honor the history of our agriculture in the state.

We are not historical farmers in Connecticut. We are beyond diverse in
our business attitude and the products we sell, the way we sell those
products. We need a Farm Bill that allows us to address that diversity.
We need risk management programs that allow our farmers that are not
commodity producers that go even further than the AGR programs to have
us help with risk management on our farms.

We need a Farm Bill that doesn\'t pit commodity programs against other
agriculture. Connecticut is other agriculture, and we\'re strong, and
we\'re extremely proud of that. And we need the programs that support us
with Cooperative Extension funding. Those are the people that help us
with our start-up farms, with our growers, with our marketing. And
without that support and that financial backing we have even more
difficulty reaching our markets and being successful.

Farmland preservation in this area is extremely important because of the
pressure from building. We need not only to be strong in our farmland
preservation efforts, but we need to be strong in our viability efforts
and the ability to make money-producing products that our consumers
provide.

Our consumers in our area in Connecticut, the Boston and New York
markets, are extremely well educated. And we\'re giving them the
products they\'re asking for, and we need to do an even better job, and
USDA support and Farm Bill support for those efforts would be greatly
appreciated.

MODERATOR: Thank you.

MS. MARGERY SHANSKY (sp): Thank you. Good morning. I am Attorney Margery
Shansky. My office is in New Haven. But my practice extends through New
Haven, Middlesex, New London, Tolland, and Hartford Counties.

I am associated with the Connecticut Land Use Leadership Alliance, which
is an integrated program that originated through the Land Use Law Center
at Case University. And we present a four-day land-use leadership
training to decision-makers, land-use board members, town planners, town
leaders. Attorney Penny, who spoke to you earlier is a farmer from
Somers, participated in one of our four-day programs.

Our goal is to inculcate a higher degree of understanding and awareness
of natural resources and tools for achieving sustainable development in
Connecticut. We encourage the full recognition and acknowledgement in
the Farm Bill of Connecticut\'s agricultural needs and agricultural
goals.

We take in our four days the opportunity to give land-use leaders
hard-core information about environmental and natural resources. We have
been supported in that effort by the NRCS to whom we are exceedingly
grateful.

And then one-half of our program is devoted to collaborative training
exercises and training in and of itself in order to first of all empower
commissioners to exercise the authority within their jurisdictions
without embarrassment, apology and unease.

And secondly to try to even the playing field between the developers who
come forward with development ideas that threaten open space and
farmland so that instead of reacting in all cases to proposals that are
made to commission, they are able to plan, able to have a higher degree
of planning and awareness of the impact of their actions in a broader
context than just the proposal before them.

I\'m currently involved with the Wildlife Conservation Service, WCS, on
the Farmington River biotic corridor drafting a series of zoning
regulations for the seven towns that share the Farmington River in order
to take a broader watershed view of what\'s going on. And of course
agriculture enters into that equation as well, so we thank very much the
Department of Agriculture for the support thus far and encourage that as
the first young lady speaker said, education is the key.

And it doesn\'t just reside in the young people. Land Use Commissioners
in New Haven in Connecticut are largely volunteer lay people who do not
have backgrounds. Our goal is to uplift the dialog and give them the
tools they need. Thank you.

MODERATOR: Thank you, Margery. If anyone else would like to provide two
minutes of testimony, please move to one of the mikes and we\'ll call on
you next. Thank you. Go right ahead.

MR. DICK DAVIS: My name is Dick Davis. I\'m president of Simsbury Land
Trust. And I\'m here to state my strong support for the Natural Resource
Conservation Service, Farm and Ranch Land Protection Program. We\'re the
recipients of two grants for farmland protection, and I just want to
make a couple points of how very important these are both to the local
level and I think in the bigger picture.

Of course we have very valuable agricultural soils and active productive
farms that are at risk because of generational changes and rise in land
prices of going out of existence. So that\'s the basic reason.

But I think one thing that\'s not talked of as often is the importance,
kind of the flipside of population density/high land prices, the
importance of the program in areas like that as well as across the
country, and that\'s if that\'s where the people are in the long term
we\'re not going to have a successful farmland protection unless you
have broad-based public support.

And these programs have gotten tremendous support locally. We raised,
because of the USDA program we were able to raise over \$1 million in
private donations for these two farms. That could never have happened
without USDA program support. It gave us credibility, gave people the
confidence that we\'d follow through and get the job done.

Because of it we\'ve also done a tremendous amount of publicity
throughout the town and the area. So I just wanted to say thank you very
much.

MODERATOR: Thank you, Dick. And under Dick\'s leadership Simsbury Land
Trust was just recognized by the Connecticut Trustees of Eastern States
for one of their farmland preservation awards. Please.

MR. JOE JEREMIAH: My name is Joe Jeremiah. I\'m a farmer in Longford,
Connecticut. I\'m also a member of the Connecticut Greenhouse Growers
Association. We have a greenhouse production facility in Longford, and
it\'s been growing for the last 20 years.

And probably 10 years ago I hardly heard the word Canada. And recent
years every year, every week, every month I hear it more and more from
our customers. Oh, we can get that cheaper in Canada. Luckily we have
fairly loyal customers. We sell to independent garden centers. Some of
our colleagues that just sell to big box stores don\'t have that; every
penny really counts.

And we\'ve always been considered on the cutting edge of technology and
everything when our colleagues come in, patting us on the back, so you
think you\'re doing pretty good. But if we\'re so efficient and we
can\'t compete with Canada \-- so we got to go check this out. I was
amazed and my eyes were opened wide when I went there.

They have every bell and whistle in their facility, things that we
cannot afford, even the most, anybody in our state that the largest to
the smallest, nobody could afford to have these type of conveyors and
plant handling systems and production facilities to grow tomatoes and
peppers and cucumbers. And all the produce is being shipped into our
state. In the Hartford market there\'s trainloads every single day.

I\'m just amazed. I asked the farmers up there, and they are a little
reluctant to tell you, but basically they\'re dealing with large
subsidies. And it doesn\'t matter if it\'s just a problem of the day \--
right now fuel is an issue. So they\'re outfitting their greenhouses
with wood burning stoves and stuff like that, anything that they need,
thermal blankets.

Right now I\'m trying to \-- there\'s some grants available I\'m told
for this, and I just have a hard time getting my hands on information
for it. But the producers in this state are every day now \-- we\'ve got
guys that are telling us they might not even start their greenhouses up
until March. And the Canadians are stepping right in and saying, we\'ll
take that production.

I mean that really concerns me more than anything. It\'s like 10 year
ago I haven\'t heard of it. Now it\'s amazing. They\'re expanding where
we\'re looking at possibly a decrease. We were expanding every year for
the last 15 years, but they\'re expanding and we\'re looking at
decreasing. That\'s just kind of a scary scenario right now.

So we need more funding in the greenhouse end of things for conservation
of energy, water and labor for that matter. Thank you.

MODERATOR: Thank you, Joe.

Erin.

MS. ERIN SEPE: Good morning. My name is Erin Sepe. I\'m a loan officer
with First Pioneer Farm Credit. And you\'ve heard about how diverse
Connecticut agriculture is. The largest part of my portfolio is
greenhouses and nurseries and horses. And the horticultural decorations
for your stage and the fact that you had to pass equine events to get in
here is just a testimony to that.

In making loans to new farmers or even helping existing ones continue,
there are a few challenges we run into with the USDA\'s Farm Service
Agency program. And I think there are three easy things you can do to
help us out, make loans that we might not otherwise be able to.

The first one is the guaranteed loan limits aren\'t always high enough
at \$813,000, which may sound like a lot to a small farmer. But once we
pass that limit we have to go to the business and industry program which
those guarantees are not only difficult to get but they have the added
requirement of the business being in a less-populated town, which is
very difficult to find in Connecticut, and it doesn\'t always make sense
to me that the bigger businesses are in the smaller towns.

Secondly, our farmers are in a litigious society and they know that in
estate planning they need certain vehicles such as trusts, family
partnerships to continue the farm even when they are gone. However, once
multiple entities become involved USDA no longer considers many of these
businesses family farms. And therefore they are ineligible for several
programs.

Finally, there\'s really no help for the support activities for
agriculture. This means the fertilizer, chemical feed dealers, the
farriers and the veterinarians, and the marketers and distributors \--
there are no extra programs for them that enable me to work with these
businesses. For instance, I have a produce distributor whose first year
sales are pushing \$1 million of Connecticut-grown produce. But the
challenges that go along with a new business such as limited liquidity,
other capital to invest on the owner\'s part, are a big challenge into
making a loan where it might not otherwise be able to be made.

But I can\'t work with this gentleman no matter what he is doing or how
great a job he is doing with the USDA, because he\'s not growing
himself. He\'s doing the most important thing to preserve Connecticut
farmland and Connecticut agriculture. He\'s providing a means for
farmers to be profitable, selling their produce for a higher price so
they can remain economically viable as businesses. Thank you.

MODERATOR: Thank you, Erin. Please.

MR. JOE DEFRANCESCO (sp): I\'m Joe DeFrancesco from Northford,
Connecticut. We have a vegetable farm, 110-acre vegetable farm along
with greenhouse production. I\'m a third-generation farmer. Our farm
started in 1900. My sons are in the business too. I have four sons.
Three of them are full-time also.

We\'re finding it difficult to compete today in our industry because of
the higher costs of everything going on, competing with produce and
things being brought in from other countries, other states. I think we
have the higher cost of living in Connecticut. Our minimum wage is the
highest, so we find it very hard to bring product into the Hartford
market. We\'re competing with Canadian vegetables and things like that.
A lot of times they\'ll bring in pepper product that will say, oh we can
get it from Canada \$2.00 cheaper. This is what you\'re going to get. So
it\'s very difficult to compete with other countries that have different
ways of producing things.

I\'m also in the greenhouse business, and we\'re finding it very
difficult in the last year or so to compete also. We\'re finding with
the energy costs that everything\'s going up; with the price of oil,
price of plastic is going sky-high and we\'re finding it very difficult
to really compete in the market because of everything being shipped in
from other countries.

And some customers are sticking with us; some are not. But we just find
it very difficult to contend with it. We sort of need some help to stay
in business. With my sons being in business \-- they\'re young
generation boys. We want to be competitive and make money on it, not
just work. We work hard because it is in our blood to be a farmer.
There\'s a lot of other ways we can be in business, but we\'d like to
just keep it going.

I think we need some help with the energy costs, some other ways of
heating. We could probably use a lot of oil in our industry, a lot of
diesel fuel for trucking. So we need some help to help us with some
programs with energy cost for conservation, and other programs that
would pertain to our business to keep it viable in the state of
Connecticut. Thank you.

MODERATOR: Thank you, Joe. Is there anyone else who would like to
address one of the six questions? At this time is there anyone who would
like to provide comment in general? Yes, please. Again, identify
yourself, your town and your relationship to agriculture.

MR. PHILIP SNOW: My name is Philip Snow. I have a farm in Easton,
Connecticut. Easton like Joe just said, the speaker before me, the price
per acre in Connecticut is astronomical. No matter what part of the
state you go to it\'s very difficult for farmers like ourselves \--
we\'ve been in business close to 100 years \-- to make it.

So we need the federal government, United States Department of
Agriculture, NRCS, they\'ve helped us in the past. And they continue to
help us. But we need a stronger commitment financially for them for
easements, easements for farms, not for open space and golf courses, but
for farming, because as we saw before when I came in here earlier
there\'s a lot of young people want to go into farming. And that\'s the
only way farming is going to make it, especially in Connecticut, is for
the young blood. So we have to make it \--

I\'m fortunate. I have three children, two in business with me. If it
wasn\'t for them, I have developers every week coming and they say,
whatever you want we\'ll give you. I said, it\'s not about money. I love
the land and I love what I do. Most farmers in this room will agree with
that. You farm because you love it. You don\'t look at the financial,
but we have to make a living. And that\'s what it\'s all about. Thank
you.

MODERATOR: Thank you. Anyone else who would like to step to the
microphone to make comment?

MR. GORDON GIBSON: If I may, realizing I\'m speaking for the second
time? Secretary Rey, in my earlier remarks I discussed our concern for
food supply in Connecticut. A speaker who followed me asked, why don\'t
we have storage facilities in Connecticut? The simple answer is, we are
so hand-to-mouth on our food supply we don\'t have much to worry about
storing.

One of the concerns in Connecticut is the cost of food to the consumer.
Right now I can go to a grocery store and I will have to pay almost
\$4.00 for a gallon of milk. I can go to a convenience store,
specifically a 7-11 a quarter mile from my house. I can buy the
identical gallon of milk from the same producer for \$2.69. In a matter
of two miles that\'s a difference of \$1.30 a gallon. Meanwhile put it
in consumer terms, our farmers are receiving about \$1.00 a gallon for
the milk as it leaves the farm. They can\'t subsist on that.

We need programs to ensure an adequate food supply. Our people in the
Northeast \-- and I\'m not speaking just for Connecticut now \-- people
throughout the Northeast want quality locally grown products. Couple of
years ago in Rhode Island six dairy farmers got together and they formed
an organization, which they are now marketing as Rhodey Fresh Milk.
There is so much demand for their product that they cannot supply enough
product to fill the needs of all the stores who they\'re supplying now.
There are other stores who want to get in and carry their product;
they\'re saying no, because they just don\'t have enough product.

We have a group in Eastern Connecticut, marketing under I believe the
name of The Farmers Cow, who are doing the same thing.

I want to impress upon you, Secretary Rey, we are not hobby farmers. We
are not the big farmers of the Midwest and the Great Plains, but we are
very economically important farmers. We\'re supplying a need. But it is
the pressures of urban development that are squeezing our farmers out.
And this is what we need to combat, and we need programs for that. Thank
you.

MODERATOR: Thank you, Gordon. Anyone else who would like to step to the
microphone to make general comments?

It seems very appropriate this morning that we\'ve heard about
interagency cooperation, Secretary\-- how NRCS, Cooperative Extension,
FSA, APHIS, all of the USDA agencies work together. We haven\'t heard
too much from the consumer, but Gordon\'s comments relate to that whole
issue of how do we also provide nutritious food at a price that people
can afford and purchase?

So the secretary will wrap up our listening session with some closing
comments and thoughts. I think it\'s very appropriate that we held this
listening session at an agricultural fair where we showcase the products
of our state and the hard work of our people of the state. And to
recognize the Fair Association, we have today Richard Miller, president
of the Berlin Lions Club who would like to say a few words. But also I
think we should give the Berlin Fair a round of applause for their
support and willingness to host this listening session.

\[Applause.\]

MR. RICHARD MILLER: Thank you. We\'re very happy to have you here on
this fine day. And we hope you all take a chance to walk around and see
our fair and all the great things we have here. It\'s been a pleasure
for the Berlin Lions to host this event, and Secretary Rey on behalf of
the Berlin Lions I\'d like to present to you our friendship banner.

\[pause in proceedings\]

SEC. REY: Thank you very much.

\[Applause.\]

Well, you haven\'t heard much from me as I\'ve been spending most of the
time listening to you. And I have five pages of left-handed and somewhat
scribbled but nevertheless detailed notes that we\'ll take back and work
with as we have with the other Farm Bill Forums, begin the task of
putting together the 2007 Farm Bill.

As we\'ve done these forums I have become a connoisseur of state and
county agricultural fairs. But I\'ve also been struck by the diversity
in American agriculture. The last forum I did was in Idaho, one of the
two state fairs that Idaho holds. And the one before that was in Alaska.
In Idaho we heard a lot about potatoes and sugar beets and in Alaska a
lot about fish. In fact the fishermen were keenly interested in there
being a fish title to the 2007 Farm Bill, something we might hear about
in some other coastal states as well.

But I\'m also struck as we go through more of these by some of the
similarities in what we\'re hearing. Most notably at almost every stop
in every state in every region of the country the concern about what the
future holds and what the next generation of American agriculture will
face, along with a strongly held desire that the 2007 Farm Bill be a
much more forward-looking piece of legislation as it will most likely be
the Farm Bill that will determine what the next generation in American
agriculture faces given the age demographics that we face in agriculture
and for that matter even within USDA and among our own employees.

So I think one of the things I can tell you on behalf of myself, my
colleagues and the Secretary, all of us who have participated in these
things, that message has penetrated and a lot of what we\'ll be thinking
about will be trying to enact, try to construct and convince Congress to
enact programs that help the transition from our current generation of
farmers to those of you here who wish to be the next generation of
farmers and carry forward American agriculture.

There\'s a lot of work that we\'ll have to proceed to develop the 2007
Farm Bill. Of course we are hoping to conclude these sessions as quickly
as possible, but we\'ve still got over a dozen left to do. And then in
December we will be meeting with our trading partners in Hong Kong to
talk about agricultural trade and our commitment to free and fair trade
around the world.

One of the most interesting and telling statistics that govern the
future of American agriculture are the statistics associated with our
consumption and our production. Fortunately or unfortunately, and it is
some of both, our rate of production of American agriculture is
increasing at twice the rate of our consumption. So we literally will
need to be able to develop and access foreign markets at an increasing
rate in order for American agriculture to succeed so the trade
negotiations that will start this December will go a long way toward
determining what the next Farm Bill will look like and how we organize
federal support for American agriculture.

And after we conclude those negotiations then we will sit down early
next year and start the hard work of trying to draft a Farm Bill along
with the Congress, and after Congress considers it interacting with them
to seek final legislative passage sometime in 2007.

The thoughts you\'ve given us today and your peers and counterparts
around the country have already provided us will be instrumental in
helping us decide what should go in that Farm Bill and what it should
look like. So for your participation on a sunny October Saturday when
there were a lot of other opportunities available, on behalf of the
Secretary I\'d like to thank you and then wrap this up by fulfilling my
commitment to have you out of here in time to be wherever you want to be
at 1:00 to see how the remainder of the baseball season plays out.

Thanks very much for your time and your insights.

\[Applause.\]

MODERATOR: Secretary Rey, as Under Secretary for Natural Resources and
the Environment at USDA we certainly appreciate your time and on behalf
of everyone here, thank you for making the effort to come to Connecticut
for what we think is our first Farm Bill listening session. Thank you
all very much for your time.

SEC. REY: Thank you.

\[Applause.\]