Vilsack pushes link for local food producers, consumers

DES MOINES – The country could do a better a job connecting locally grown food to local consumers, U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said during a speech in Iowa Tuesday.

Appearing at the Community Food Security Coalition Conference, Vilsack underscored the Obama administration's commitment to local food producers.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has launched “Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food” to connect local food producers to consumers.

The program is soliciting ideas at www.usda.gov/knowyourfarmer .

“We're encouraging and hoping that thousands of people will come in with ideas and thoughts so that we can really promote this program,” Vilsack said.

Iowa's former governor said consumers are now more interested in where their food is grown, making locally grown food a $5 billion industry and growing.

Vilsack pointed to statistics showing 108,000 new farming operations over the last five years with sales less than $10,000.

“Now some may see that as a minimal impact on our food supply and on agriculture, but I see it as a tremendous opportunity,” Vilsack said.

One of the Obama administration's first actions was to restore funding for block grants for specialty crops, because they wanted to send a message about their commitment to agriculture “it its most comprehensive sense,” Vilsack said.

The administration also dedicated money to allow organic farmers to participate in conservation efforts the same way production agriculture can.

Vilsack said the administration will continue to commit money to promote farmers' markets, where people have an opportunity to talk to producers and learn more about the food they consume.

He wants to see the greater emphasis on local food producers translate to schools by making more fruits and vegetables available to students.

Vilsack said when he interviewed for the job with President Obama, Obama told him he wanted children in the U.S. to have more nutritious food.

The reauthorization of the federal school nutrition program is a chance to make a bolder statement about the importance of nutrition in school lunches, with more fruits and vegetables and less sugar and salt, Vilsack said.

Vilsack described meeting a fifth-grader who advocated for more whole grains in student lunches and a high school student who said he sees a difference when he eats balanced meals.

“His capacity to learn, his capacity to enjoy school he believes has been enhanced,” Vilsack said.

Lynn Fallon, one of the organizers of the event, said the views on agriculture expressed by Vilsack were a big difference from the Bush administration's.

“When you've got the secretary of agriculture advocating for finding ways to develop new supply chains and recognizing that we do need to make it easier for schools and other institutions to get fresh, local produce, that's great,” Fallon said. “You can't ask for much more in an advocate.”

Vilsack received a less welcoming response from some in the crowd when he was asked about genetically modified foods and what one questioner called “genetic pollution.” Vilsack said there are conflicting studies on genetically modified foods and described efforts to find common ground on the matter.

A few crowd members booed when he explained that there are concerns about the increasing global population and the capacity to be able to feed them.