 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.
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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]
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