Sustainability

An Inconvenient Truth

December 10 2009

Hello everybody out there in farm country. This radio commentary is brought to you by the Renewable Fuels Association, Wal-Mart Stores, Monsanto, and John Deere. They are all friends, supporters, and allies of a healthy farm economy and prosperous rural America. Thank you.

And now for today’s commentary—

Do we really think that the climatologists, journalists, politicians, and climate gloopies that flew off to Copenhagen can save us? Can they stop global warming?

They want us to believe…

Read More/Listen

Energy Independence

October 29 2009

Hello everybody out there in farm country. This radio commentary is brought to you by the Renewable Fuels Association, Wal-Mart Stores, Monsanto, and John Deere. They are all friends, supporters, and allies of a healthy farm economy and prosperous rural America. Thank you.

And now for today’s commentary—

Are we really serious about reducing our reliance on imported energy? Shouldn’t this be a priority for national security reasons, not to mention the jobs we can create and money we can…

Read More/Listen

Feed the People

September 10 2009

Hello everybody out there in farm country. This radio commentary is brought to you by the Renewable Fuels Association, Wal-Mart Stores, Monsanto, and John Deere. They are all friends, supporters, and allies of a healthy farm economy and prosperous rural America. Thank you.

And now for today’s commentary—

Almost every week, there is a new article, a new documentary, a new commentary that is critical of the way we farm. They don’t like “factory farms.” Not organic. They don’t like commercial…

Read More/Listen

GM Crops Blessed By the Vatican

August 6 2009

Hello everybody out there in farm country. This radio commentary is brought to you by the Renewable Fuels Association, Wal-Mart Stores, Monsanto, and John Deere. They are all friends, supporters, and allies of a healthy farm economy and prosperous rural America. Thank you.

And now for today’s commentary—

Maybe you missed this, but I think it is significant. The Vatican’s Pontifical Academy of Science has endorsed genetically modified crops. It’s good to have the Pope on our side. The Vatican is…

Read More/Listen

Sustainable

August 13 2008

Hello everybody out there in farm country. This radio commentary is brought to you by theRenewable Fuels Association, Wal-Mart Stores, Monsanto, and John Deere. They are all friends, supporters, and allies of a healthy farm economy and prosperous rural America. Thank you.

And now for today's commentary.

I've come across a lot of whacko ideas over the years but here's one that is outrageous and maybe even dangerous. The Wisconsin-based Leonardo Academy is promoting what they call a standard for…

Read More/Listen

In The Line Of Fire

February 20 2008

It has been said that this is a "golden age" for agriculture. I won't disagree. Wheat prices are out of sight. Corn price is double what it has been in recent years. Milk price is double. All my years in this business, I have heard that farm programs inflate land prices. They probably did but not anymore. The market is driving land values up. Can this"golden age" endure? We shall see.

You know how it works.Whoever is on top, they're the target. "Bring them down." Well, we are on top.…

Listen

Horse Slaughter

January 30 2008

When I was Secretary of AgricuIture, the European Union delisted all of our meat packing plants, claiming that they needed to reinspect and recertify them.The real truth wasn't that our plants were in any way inferior totheirs. No! They just had too much meat in Europe and didn't want ours. After about 2 years, they certified 9 of our plants. They were all horsemeat plants. The French just couldn't get enough horsemeat. So -- we resumed shipping horsemeat to Europe.

But, that was 20 years…

Listen

bST

January 24 2007

The St. Louis Post Dispatch quotes a mother buying milk. Here's what she has to say: "I'm not sure what it is, but I think it's bad."

So, what is so bad? Milk from cows that receive a supplement called bST that increases their milk production. It was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 1993. We've already been drinking the milk for 13 years with no ill effects. The milk from a cow that is given the supplement is identical to the milk from a cow that does not receive the…

Read More/Listen

The War and Agriculture

April 8 2003

It's been a long time since we went into a planting season with more uncertainty than we face today. We have a war against terrorism, a war in Iraq, a soft economy and drought in many parts of this country. A budget deficit forcing Congress to cut spending -- maybe ours -- and farm prices continue to languish.

Where do we go from here? Is there any other way to go but up? First, I think the war will be a net plus for agriculture in both the Sh0l1 term and long term. Short term, President…

Read More/Listen

Support Domestic Energy Sources

October 24 2000

Oil prices have spiked up again. I'm sure we aren't going to tap the strategic oil reserve for any more oil now. The election will be behind us and there won't be any reason to open it up.

The point that we don't want to miss is that there is a very unique climate out there right now. A climate that is crying out for more of our own energy. Less dependence on foreign oil sources.

It's fine to talk about electric cars, etc. but let's be realistic. This nation nms on oil and coal and to a…

Read More/Listen

Page 3 of 4 pages  < 1 2 3 4 >