Specialty Crop and Value-Added Agriculture Promotion Act

Bill: 109-s-1556
Sponsor: Sen. Wyden, Ron [D-OR]
Introduced: 2005-07-29 in the Senate
Policy area: Agriculture and Food
Subjects: Administrative procedure
Agribusiness
Agricultural cooperatives
Agricultural subsidies
Agriculture in foreign trade
Aquaculture
Authorization
Block grants
Commerce
Congress
Congressional investigations
Congressional reporting requirements
Crop insurance
Department of Agriculture
Economics and Public Finance
Education
Elementary and secondary education
Executive reorganization
Exports
Farm produce
Farmers
Federal officials
Finance and Financial Sector
Fisheries
Fishery products
Flowers
Foreign Trade and International Finance
Fruit
Government Operations and Politics
Government publicity
Governmental investigations
Grants-in-aid
Horticulture
Insurance premiums
International Affairs
Law
Marine and coastal resources, fisheries
Marketing of farm produce
Nontariff trade barriers
Nuts
Office of the U.S. Trade Representative
Organic farming
Produce trade
Quality control
Quality of products
School lunch program
Shellfish
Social Welfare
Standards
Tariff
Trade agreements
Vegetables

Summary:
action_date: 2005-07-29
text: 
Specialty Crop and Value-Added Agriculture Promotion Act - Amends the Specialty Crops Competitiveness Act of 2004 to include within the definition of specialty crop: (1) farm-raised or wild-harvested fish and shellfish; and (2) organically produced specialty crops.
 
Makes the authorization of appropriations for state specialty crop block grants permanent.
 
Amends the Agricultural Risk Protection Act of 2000 to replace the agricultural marketing resource center pilot project with a state block grant program for value-added agricultural product market development. 
 
Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to establish an incentive program for third-party certification of agricultural producers and processors for quality and production practices that increase agricultural commodity marketability or value. Provides for up 50% reimbursement of participant certification costs.
 
Amends the Federal Crop Insurance Act to direct the Commodity Credit Corporation to carry out the adjusted gross revenue insurance pilot program as a permanent program. Authorizes the Corporation to: (1) expand the program to cover any county in which crops are produced; and (2) grant temporary policy subsidies for producers located in a county that has a high level of specialty crop production and has not had a high level of crop insurance coverage coverage.
 
Amends the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act to direct the Secretary to: (1) make available to students in not more than 100 schools in each state, and in elementary and secondary schools on one Indian reservation, free fresh and dried fruits and vegetables throughout the school day in one or more school-designated areas; and (2) give priority to states that produce large quantities of specialty crops.
 
Amends the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act to increase operating loan limits for loans guaranteed other than by the Secretary. Revises the related inflation percentage determination.
 
Amends the Trade Act of 1974 to establish the position of Assistant United States Trade Representative for Specialty Crops.
 
Amends the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 to increase the authorization of appropriations for specialty crop technical assistance. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2005-07-29
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry. (text of measure as introduced: CR S9474-9475)
action_date: 2005-07-29
text: Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S9473-9474)
action_date: 2005-07-29
text: Introduced in Senate