Remarks by Secretary of Agriculture Dan Glickman New Markets Initiative
Hermitage, Arkansas   November 5, 1999


                                           Release No. st006.99

Remarks
          As Prepared for Delivery
                                              by
                    Secretary of Agriculture Dan Glickman
                               New Markets Initiative
                   Hermitage, Arkansas   November 5, 1999

     "Thank you very much, Mayor Colvin, for that kind introduction...and for
the tremendous reception you and your town have given us today.  I also want
to thank Jill Long-Thompson, our Under Secretary of Agriculture for Rural
Development, who is such a strong leader for communities like this one around
the country. 

     "As Secretary of Agriculture, people watch what I eat and listen to what
I say about what they should eat.  So I want to say loud and clear here today:
tomatoes are good for you, and we should all eat more of them.

     "It's a great honor to be here with President Clinton, who has been
rural America's number one champion, not just as President for nearly 7 years
but as Governor of this fine state for over a decade.            
     

     "As a son of rural America himself, I think the President would agree
with me that there is something unique about places like this -- the
informality and social cohesion neighbors helping neighbors...people feeling
vested in their communities.  With apologies to the creators of the television
show Cheers, I believe that rural America is the place where everybody knows
your name.  

     "But to ensure its continued viability, rural America needs access to
the tools and infrastructure that make communities competitive in the modern
world.  That's why the President, even as he turned a mammoth federal deficit
into a surplus, actually increased investments in rural America.  The result
has been a kind of rural renaissance   lower unemployment, population growth,
higher per capita income, record rural homeownership, and more.

     "But rural America still lags behind the rest of the country when it
comes to earnings, employment, education and other key economic indicators. 
So we still have a lot of work to do to ensure that places like Bradley County
are not left on the outside looking in at this strong national economy. 

     "Limited access to capital is one of the major barriers to growth in
rural America.  At the Department of Agriculture, we do our part, with loan
and grant programs for everything from telecommunications systems to single-
family housing.  

     "And now, I'm proud to announce that we've reached an agreement with the
National Bankers Association that will make over $18 million in credit
available to qualified minority-owned businesses and limited-resource farmers
and ranchers.  The loans will be guaranteed by USDA.  I want to thank the
National Bankers Association and its members for this extraordinary
commitment.  This kind of partnership is what the President's New Markets
Initiative is all about. 

     "Hermitage, Arkansas is the perfect example of the potential in these
New Markets.  Hermitage has shown how a few innovative folks -- with some help
from their government and a commitment from the private sector -- can help
turn a community around and create a brighter future for all of its people.  

     "In 1996, the tomato growers here were in trouble.  Several were on the
verge of going bankrupt.  Their marketing opportunities were limited; their
processing equipment was insufficient; and their sales were suffering.  So
they banded together to create the Hermitage Tomato Cooperative Association,
giving themselves the financial resources to buy their own processing and
packaging equipment.

     "At about the same time, an agreement put together by the Department of
Agriculture helped the Hermitage farmers become a supplier for Burger King. 
If I may say so, it was a Whopper of a deal...which allowed everyone to have
it their way.  The Burger King relationship helped the co-op attract other
customers like Kroeger and SuperValu.  And within two years, sales soared from
$60,000 to nearly $4 million. 

     "USDA has continued to invest in this cooperative, with terrific
results.  $4 million in loan guarantees has allowed the tomato growers to
finance the purchase of two processing plants.  That has created additional,
non-farm jobs in the community and moved the co-op's total employment to 116. 
This co-op, founded only 3 years ago, is now the economic lifeblood of this
community.

     "And with this success, the cooperative may now be able to diversify. 
They are experimenting with the production of greenhouse tomatoes, which would
allow them to expand to a 9-month growing season.

     "There's been a lot of pain and struggle for America's small farmers and
ranchers these last couple of years.  On top of low prices and weak export
markets, they're trying to do business in a top-heavy farm economy, where so
much is controlled by so few.  That's why co-ops like this one are essential. 
I wish all farmers could make a living just producing bulk commodities.  But
for many, unfortunately, it just doesn't work that way anymore.  To survive,
they need to have some kind of ownership in the marketing, processing and
distribution of their goods.  That way, they get to keep a greater percentage
of the consumer dollars spent on the food that they produce.

     "Co-ops will be a big part of farming and rural growth in the 21st
century.  And USDA will continue to be there, with the resources and technical
assistance necessary to support them.  

     "The tomato growers of Hermitage deserve our congratulations for their
creativity and entrepreneurial spirit.  This is a remarkable success story
that I want to repeat in every rural community in America.  

     "It's now my pleasure to present one of the leaders who made it
possible: Director of the Hermitage Tomato Cooperative Association, Randy
Clanton.

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