News for the Egg Industry Worldwide
December 2006/Volume 111 Number 12
UEP Enters Farm Bill Debate
Election Augurs Little Shift in Farm Policy
Industry News
Public Confidence is Rule No. 1
IPE & IFE Join Forces in Atlanta
On the Road with John Todd
Industry Calendar
Marketplace
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www.wattpoultry.com
UEP Enters Farm Bill Debate
By Edward Clark, Editor
Recognizing just how important
federal farm policy is to their
members’ bottom lines, the United Egg Producers (UEP) for the first
time is actively entering the debate on
the next farm bill, officials say, scheduled for this coming year.
UEP specifically is asking Congress
for three things to be included in the
2007 Farm Bill, says Howard Magwire,
UEP’s Washington representative:
➤ Mandate that producers whose
layers contract low pathogenic avian
influenza be indemnified at 100%. “To
get everyone involved it’s crucial to
have 100% indemnification,” Magwire
says, and even though USDA’s plan
calls for 100% indemnification and
Congress has provided the money, the
Office of Management and Budget has
not been very supportive of that level
of funding. Thus it’s important to have
the 100% level written into the Farm
Bill, so it’s law.
➤ Make information submitted to
the National Animal identification Systems (NAIS) confidential. “We have a
big concern about confidentiality of
information, in that the information
not be available under the Freedom
of Information Act.” During a disease
outbreak, some information would obviously have to be released, but only
then, otherwise, there would be the risk
of information being made available
to animal terrorists. The egg industry
needs to be prepared that this issue is
going to see a lot of debate, Magwire
says. “We’re going to have a fight.”
➤ Support for research to help mitigate air emissions from egg farms
through the use from emerging technologies. The research would be conducted at Iowa State University, Penn
State University, and the University of
Kentucky.
What are the odds the egg industry
can win in obtaining these three items?
“The egg industry isn’t asking for
much and I’d like to think our chances
are pretty good,” Magwire says. “The
biggest fight will be over keeping the
national ID program private,” he says.
Keeping Hostile Legislation Out
As important as winning on these
elements, Magwire says, will be keeping hostile animal right legislation out
