12/01/05 Local perspective on a national level

If there is one thing farmers and ranchers desire more than anything else, it is information & whether that applies to market reports or how certain logistics add up to profit an operation. And along those lines, if there is one federal agency that provides that valuable information, it would be U.S.D.A.'s National Agricultural Statistics Service, the self-dubbed "fact finders of agriculture". And while N.A.S.S. is a federal agency, it does oversee several state agencies that localize information. Until last May, Ray Garibay headed the Washington State Agricultural Statistics Service. GARIBAY: I came back to Washington D.C. to head up our Market and Information Services office, basically doing some the same things that I was doing in Washington State but at the national level. And actually, Garibay's time at W.A.S.S. can be considered one of mutual benefit. For Northwest ag producers and entities, they now have a major voice within N.A.S.S. when in comes to crafting and analyzing information that fits their needs. And in Garibay's opinion, his time as W.A.S.S. Director impressed upon him the need to provide timely, localized ag information and analysis. GARIBAY: The experience that you gain out at the state level is invaluable. You can't replace it. It gives me the opportunity to understand that the national program is all encompassing. You need to provide the information at the local level, i.e. Pacific Northwest white wheat which is the bread and butter if you would of the export industry in that area. Garibay's background on both a state and now federal level will come in handy as future federal ag policy is being crafted over the next two years. He notes that the recent Farm Bill Forums and continuing discussions in Congress over the shape and scope of the 2007 Farm Bill are important tools for policymakers to use. However, his agency will be playing a big role in analyzing the feedback and data that will be compared to producer comments to craft farm policy that meets the needs of all producers nationwide. GARIBAY: N.A.S.S. is the internal fuel if you would for discussions and analysis of the issues that are brought up by the producers. The policy makers are going to look at the Census of Agriculture data to dissect and analyze some of these issues that were brought up at these listening sessions. Once again, it's an investment of the time that the producers take to fill out the reports to make sure that the policy makers have solid information when they reach and come up with a final Farm Bill policy on that.