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Washington
Update
Farm Bill Negotiations Begin
 Members of the
House of Representatives will return to work tomorrow, while
the Senate is still out for another week. Despite the holiday
recess, House
Agriculture Committee Chairman Collin
Peterson has met repeatedly with acting Agriculture
Secretary Chuck
Conner since Christmas and farm bill negotiations
among staff began last week.
Conner, who lobbied the bill on Capitol Hill before
being appointed as acting secretary, has attended all the
negotiating sessions. "I think Chuck and I are being very
frank with each other," Peterson said. "The administration
obviously wants to get a bill they can sign; we want a bill
they can sign. We want to avoid a veto. It might mean we
would not get a bill." Conner is being tight-lipped. "His
reactions are being shared only during those conversations,"
his spokesman said. The administration wants to restrict
subsidies so wealthy farmers do not receive them; it also
wants to avoid tax increases to pay for the bill. The
administration opposes the tax measures the House and Senate
used to pay for their bills, calling them tax increases.
Democrats contend the measures close
loopholes.
NFU will bring you the latest news as farm bill
negotiations continue.
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Members' Corner: Kate
Wismer, South Dakota Farmers Union
Highlighting Outstanding Members in Our
States
 Kate Wismer is a
third-generation South
Dakota Farmers Union member. She is also Miss South
Dakota and will be competing to become the 2008
Miss America at the Planet Hollywood Resort and
Casino in Las Vegas. The pageant will air January 26 at 7:00
p.m. CST on The
Learning Channel (TLC).
Kate's entire family grew up in Britton, S.D. -
including 29 of her first and second cousins, one of
which will be graduating from Britton-Hecla High School every
year between 2001 and 2016. Kate is the daughter of Susan and
Mark, two Britton farm-raised kids who made a very intentional
decision early in life to spend their adult lives raising
their own children in their small hometown. Susan keeps books
for several family businesses in Britton, including the farm
she grew up on. She was also on NFU's 2007 Policy Committee,
and is currently serving on South Dakota's Policy
Committee. Continue reading Kate's story.
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**Each week, our members get to hear about NFU's
work on Capitol Hill and around the United States.
Now, we are going to show you what our members are
doing across the country. This is part of a series
of Member Profiles that will appear each week in the
e-newsletter. Check back to get to know your fellow Farmers
Union members!
Do you know someone you would like to
feature from your state? Contact Amber
Birtcher. |
NFU Policy Committee
Convenes in D.C.
New Policy Changes Discussed for 2008
 Jan. 7 - 9, the
2008 Policy Committee met in NFU's
government releations office in Washington, D.C., to discuss
changes for NFU's 2008 Policy Book. The changes will be
discussed further and voted on by state delegates at our
annual convention March 2 - 4.
The Policy Committee consists of twelve members from
across the country (pictured, left to right): Linda
Ceylor, Wisconsin; Curt Martin, Oregon; Kristine Hondo, Idaho;
Roger Wise, Ohio; Gretel Norgeot, New England; Kimon Kotos,
Michigan; Susan Frazier, Nebraska; Karen Olson, Alaska; Eunice
Biel, Minnesota; Jim Campbell, Oklahoma; Roger Zetocha, North
Dakota. Curtis Temple, Rocky Mountain (not
pictured). |
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NFU Poll of the Week
The first e-newsletter of 2008
is also our four month anniversary - how do you
think we're doing?
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NFU Apparel
Available Online
Show Your Farmers Union Pride through
Logowear
 NFU's website
allows members to show off the organization's logo on custom
apparel.
Available on the site are shirts, hats, jackets, sweats
and blankets, among other items. Sizes and styles are
available for men, women and youth. For most items, you can
choose different colors for the apparel and the NFU logo.
NFU has set up a secure credit card transation and
orders can be sent to a different address and include a
note, making NFU's logowear a perfect gift! Visit
NFU's logowear store today and stylishly
promote Farmers
Union! |
2008 Convention
Countdown - Meet the NYAC
Andrew Bishop, Brady, Mont.Leading
up to the National Farmers Union Convention in Las Vegas, we
will be counting down the weeks by introducing the eight
members of the NFU
National Youth Advisory Council. The NYAC members
will be serving as pages at the convention. Check back next
week for our next profile!
 Andrew Bishop of
Brady, Mont. is a freshman studying mathematics and general
engineering at Montana
Tech, where he also plays football.
Andrew graduated as valedictorian from Brady High School
in 2007. He was involved in football, basketball,
weight-lifting, track and field, FFA, Positive Action
Committee and National Honor Society.
Andrew said he started attending Montana
Farmers Union summer camps "as soon as he was able
not to cry when he left his family's farm," which was at eight
years old. As he grew up he became more involved in Farmers
Union activities, including serving on the MFU Senior Youth
Advisory Council. At MFU's convention in October, he received
the highest honor bestowed to a Farmers Union youth, the
Torchbearer Award.
"Farmers Union is a special organization, but it's more
than just an organization to me. It has become a part of my
life," he said. "No other camps that I have been to have felt
more like a family. I look forward to positively leading camp
next year and brainstorming on ideas for next year's
camp." |
Join us in Las Vegas!
 NFU's 2008
Convention will be held March 2 - 4 at
Bally's in Las Vegas. Guaranteed to be an exciting mix of
top-notch speakers, policy makers and Farmers Union members
from across the country, the 2008 NFU Convention is a can't
miss event.
Last year we were privileged to have House Speaker
Nancy Pelosi provide the keynote address and we are looking
forward to another successful event in 2008. See you in Las
Vegas!
Additional Las Vegas Information:
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| State News
 Minnesota:
The 2008
Minnesota Organic Conference & Trade Show will
be held Jan. 18 - 19 at the St. Cloud Convention Center.
The conference will offer learning and networking
opportunities for those new to organic production, as well as
for those who are more experienced. Farmers, researchers,
educators, technical assistance providers and business owners
will have plenty of time to talk and learn together.
Minnesota Farmers Union will have a
booth at the conference and MFU President Doug Peterson and
MFU Legislative Affairs Director Thom Petersen will be
attending. For more information, or to register, visit the conference's website.
Iowa: Iowa
Farmers Union has been invited to provide a weekly
two to three-minute commentary on agricultural issues for KTIC-AM
radio out of West Point, Neb. This station covers
western Iowa to Des Moines.
The weekly spot debuted Wednesday, Jan. 2 with a piece by
former IFU president Gary Lamb urging Iowans to caucus. The
commentary will run each week at around 3:20 p.m. on
Wednesdays. The station does not yet have a feed on the
internet, but those within the listening area can tune in to
840 AM!
If you have topic ideas, or if you would like to try your
hand (and voice) at recording a commentary, contact Leigh
Adcock at (800)775-5227 or iafu@isunet.net.
Pennsylvania: On Jan. 8, Pennsylvania Farmers
Union voiced its opposition to efforts by
the FDA that would change the definition
of milk. Current standards do not allow for the use of
ultra-filtered milk, commonly referred to as milk protein
concentrates (MPC), for the production of milk, ice cream and
cheese.
"Using non-milk ingredients only benefits the processor's
profit margins. There is no demand or benefit for dairy
producers or consumers," PFU President Larry Breech said.
"Furthermore, a 2001 Government Accounting Office
investigation reported ultra-filtered milk is not
nutritionally equivalent to fluid milk."
Breech urged dairy producers and consumers to contact FDA
and urge the agency not to move forward with plans to allow
non-milk products in the manufacture of dairy
products. NFU has previously submitted comments to FDA in strong opposition
to the proposal, and will do so again this year. The current
comment period closes February 11, 2008.
Have NFU news you want to share? Send
any info about meetings, conventions, state fairs, individual
members' success, state government news, or anything else
relevant to NFU and its members to Amber
Birtcher. |
Farmer's Share
of Retail Food Dollar
December
2007
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Farm Price
Barometer
December 2007
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