12/30/05 Top fruit industry stories of `05, Pt.2

If 2005 is any indication, 2006 should be a very good year for fruit industry recognition in the realm of federal agriculture policy. That's because what started as a year of threats may have laid the ground work for increased specialty crop involvement in the next Farm Bill. When the Bush Administration announced proposed cuts in the 2006 Fiscal Year budget would include reductions in Hatch Act funds for ag research at land grant universities, it put officials like Oregon State University Dean of Ag Thayne Dutson on lobby mode. DUTSON: The research itself doesn't create that economic activity. The economic activity happens because growers and processors and marketers actually use that data and information and implement it into their operations. Those funds remained in place when the budget process was said and done. And in fact, specialty crops actually gained ground as Congress finally approved funding for the Specialty Crop Competitiveness Act, designed. And as U.S.D.A. held Farm Bill Forums across the nation, especially in the Northwest, it appeared Ag Secretary Mike Johanns held the belief that specialty crops should get more consideration for federal marketing and research dollars. But the recognition comes not only from a federal policy standpoint, but from a nutrition and marketing standpoint as well. Details are coming up in our next program.