Wednesday, August 08, 2014
 
sponsored by

Congressman Aaron Schock hosts ag summit at Lincoln College

Part 1: Overview of the day

Send a link to a friend

[August 08, 2014]  Tuesday morning U.S. Rep. Aaron Schock was at the Lincoln Center hosting an ag summit open to everyone in his district.

The area provided for the meeting quickly filled, and extra chairs were brought in to accommodate all those in attendance.

The day began at 7 a.m. with a variety of agriculture vendors setting up tables along the walls and welcoming visitors to stop and learn more about the products and services being offered.

At 8 a.m. Lincoln College President John Blackburn opened the day by saying a few words about the college. He said the college was built on solid farm values such as "work before you play," "help your neighbor," and "a handshake is as good as a signature." He also noted that a large amount of the Lincoln College endowment is thanks to the local farming community

After speaking for a few minutes, Blackburn turned to the task of introducing Aaron Schock. He noted Schock's accomplishments -- serving the community he lived in at a young age, serving on his school board at age 19, being appointed its president and then working his way into politics.

"I'm thinking today I'm introducing Congressman Schock, but it wouldn't surprise me if some day I'm introducing Gov. Schock or Sen. Schock or something like that because he just has what it takes," Blackburn said.

Schock began by talking about where he is from, Peoria, and how people respond to that.

"When I'm out in Washington," he said, "people will say, 'Oh, you're from Peoria. Your biggest employer is Caterpillar.' I will say, 'No, my biggest employer is agriculture.'"

Schock went on to later say that one of the challenges he faces in Washington is to make people understand the importance of agriculture. He noted that there are only 60 members of Congress who serve an agriculture-dominated district.

He said this was a big challenge in trying to pass a new five-year farm bill.

He explained that as urban areas grow, rural areas are becoming less dense. This makes it all the more difficult when trying to educate the rest of them on the importance of agriculture. He said the thing to remember is, as agriculture goes, so goes the rest of the economy.

Schock quickly acknowledged local county board members present from throughout his district. He also noted the presence of state Reps. Norine Hammond, Raymond Poe and Rich Brauer.

Schock said he'd chosen speakers to join him who would hopefully help educate, but also help open the doors for conversation throughout the day.

Sid Parks was the first speaker of the day. Parks is with Growmark Inc., the mother company of the Farm Service companies such as Ag-Land FS in Lincoln. Parks has been with the company for 18 years and was there to discuss new technology and technology yet to come.

He talked about a wide variety of tools that are currently available to the grain producer. He focused a great deal on computer technology and the use of GPS, or global positioning systems, in the field for planting, fertilizer and chemical applications.

The second speaker of the day was U.S. Rep. Frank Lucas of Oklahoma. Lucas is the chair of the House Agricultural Committee.

He spoke primarily about the work that is being done to get a farm bill passed before the current bill begins its expiration in September.

[to top of second column]

Much of the focus of his talk was on the nutrition component of the farm bill and the abuse of the food stamp program.

He also spoke on the conservation portion of the bill and discussed direct farm payments and crop insurance.

He told the audience the job of putting together a new farm bill has had its challenges. One of the biggest hurdles he's had is the introduction of new committee members who are serving in their first or second years in Congress.

The manner in which he made that statement bothered one member of the audience, who later took it to task. During the question-and-answer session at the end of the day, the audience member said he was disappointed to hear Lucas comment in such a manner. However, Schock said Lucas' comments spoke to the fact that as new congressmen, before they can act responsibly, they have to be educated on the program. This takes time, Schock explained.

The last speaker of the morning was Bob Riemenschneider, deputy administrator of the Office of Global Analysis for the U.S. Department of Agriculture Foreign Agricultural Services.

Riemenschneider spoke primarily about agriculture exports and foreign trade agreements.

He said the United State exports 45 percent of its soybeans, 23 percent of its pork and 12 percent of its corn.

With recent developments in free trade agreements, the market potential of U.S. farm products can increase. He said that developing countries will be driving the demand for meat, corn and soy in the future as agreements are made.

He also told the audience that foreign trade agreements will boost competitiveness.

He was asked by an audience member about trade with Cuba. Riemenschneider said the U.S. has had sanctions on Cuba that only permitted them to purchase food and medication. Five years ago when the U.S. was trading with Cuba, it had been an OK experience, but now Cuba is having trouble with its financing.

After all three men had spoken and fielded a few questions along the way; Schock returned to the podium, and about the next hour was spent with audience participation. Questions and comments were offered about a wide variety of agricultural interests but also touched on one unexpected topic: high-speed rail.

After about four hours, the summit came to an end with Schock thanking everyone for coming and inviting them to come and see him in Washington if they get the chance.

Over the next few days, LDN will bring its readers more in-depth coverage of each speaker and topic, beginning with Sid Parks of Growmark and continuing through to a report on the final hour of questions and answers as they were posed to congressman Schock.

[By NILA SMITH]

< Top Stories index

Back to top


 

News | Sports | Business | Rural Review | Teaching and Learning | Home and Family | Tourism | Obituaries

Community | Perspectives | Law and Courts | Leisure Time | Spiritual Life | Health and Fitness | Teen Scene
Calendar | Letters to the Editor