IN THIS ISSUE:

• NCGA Research Victory Tops First Quarter Accomplishments
• NCGA Urges Members to Contact Congressmen in Support of Disaster Assistance Legislation
• NCGA Continues to Push for U.S. Action Against EU Biotech Moratorium
• NCGA Has Grower Input at USDA Warehouse Act Meeting
• Grassley to Speak at NCGA Trade School
• NCGA Corn Board, Grower Leaders in Chesterfield for Priority and Policy Meeting
  

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NCGA Research Victory Tops First Quarter Accomplishments

The NCGA Research and Business Development Department topped a long list of accomplishments for the first quarter of Fiscal Year 2003 with the kickoff of Phase II of the Fiber Utilization Project.

The aim of the project is to convert corn fiber to higher-value products, opening new markets for corn growers. Under the agreement, the partners intend to economically derive high-value chemicals and oils from lower-value corn fiber. The project continues due to a $2.4 million research grant from the Department of Energy (DOE), which covers half of the estimated cost of the venture. The award enables NCGA, Archer Daniels Midland (ADM) and the DOE's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory managed by the Battelle Memorial Institute (PNNL), to extend their research on corn fiber utilization by two and a half years. Corn growers scored a river win in the closing days of 2002, when the Bush administration ordered the Army Corps of Engineers and Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) to work on an acceptable solution for the preferred alternative for operation on the Missouri River. The news came weeks after NCGA and the Coalition to Protect the Missouri River (CPR) had renewed their notice of intent to sue the Corps of FWS in an effort to prevent the two groups form issuing a preferred alternative recommending a spring rise situation. A spring rise would cause potentially disastrous flooding in the spring and make the river unnavigable during the summer months. NCGA remained on the forefront of biotechnology awareness when it conducted a two-day symposium in November on the potential benefits of pharmaceutical and industrial enzyme corn. Perhaps the most physical accomplishment of the final quarter was NCGA's move into its new headquarters in Chesterfield, Mo.

NCGA Urges Members to Contact Congressmen in Support of Disaster Assistance Legislation

Calling its grassroots to action this week, NCGA is encouraging members to immediately contact Congress to urge passage of the Companion Disaster Assistance Program (CDAP) Act, or H.R. 92. CDAP was introduced last week by Rep. Sam Graves (R-MO). Other disaster assistance bills introduced this year in Congress range in cost from $600 million to $6 billion. Unlike many of those bills, H.R. 92 provides a fiscally responsible approach that delivers much needed aid to farmers and treats crop insurance participants more fairly than the current crop disaster program. Initially introduced by Graves in the last Congress, CDAP died when the 107th Congress adjourned without acting on the legislation. NCGA is urging its members to contact their House and Senate members to urge support for CDAP's passage this year. Please visit the NCGA web site at www.ncga.com <http://www.ncga.com> and go to the Legislative Action Center to send a letter or email to your member of Congress and Senator.

NCGA Continues to Push for U.S. Action Against EU Biotech Moratorium

NCGA continues to support action against the European Union (EU) concerning its moratorium on biotechnology. The EU has maintained the moratorium over the past four years, costing U.S. corn growers an estimated $250 million per year in annual sales.

U.S. Trade Representative Robert Zoellick, quoted in Monday's Wall Street Journal, was blunt in his assessment of the EU's actions. "I see something extremely disturbing," he said. "The European anti-scientific view spreading to other parts of the world -- not letting Africans eat food you and I eat and instead, letting people starve." Zoellick also accused European countries of making economic aid to developing countries contingent on whether they prohibit biotech crops, calling the EU "immoral." At a news conference last week, he indicated that the United States is likely to bring a World Trade Organization (WTO) suit against the EU in the near future. Countries in sub-Saharan Africa are rejecting U.S. food aid in order to preserve their export markets in Europe. In October, Zambian officials turned away 26,000 tons of U.S. food aid, claiming the shipment contained biotech corn. The officials also stated the corn could pollute the country's seed stock and hurt its export markets.

NCGA Has Grower Input at USDA Warehouse Act Meeting

NCGA Production and Stewardship Action Team Vice Chairman Ron Fitchhorn and NCGA public policy staff participated in the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Warehouse Act meeting in Washington, D.C., last week Fitchhorn, past president of the Illinois Corn Growers Association, was the only grower present among several agriculture organizations in attendance. The final rule, issued last August in the Grain Standards and Warehouse Improvement Act of 2000, states federally licensed warehouse operators are subject to a single set of regulatory requirements. The policy, established in 1947 by the U.S. Supreme Court, states warehouse operators cannot be required to be licensed by both state and federal governments. The August 2002 rule made clear federally licensed warehouse operators are not subject to compliance with state warehouse requirements, including the buying and selling of grain. Recently, USDA issued a proposed rule that provide for a national indemnity fund that would give warehouses two options. Either they could participate in a fund or use other financial arrangements to cover contractual relationships. According to USDA, in the 26 states that do not have an indemnity fund, producers could receive protection that was available in the past.

Grassley to Speak at NCGA Trade School

Sen. Charles Grassley (R-IA) will speak at the upcoming 2003 NCGA Trade School Jan. 27 - 28 in Washington, D.C. Grassley, Senate Finance Committee chairman, will address trade agreements, future market opportunities and other trade related issues. Related, Grassley was named last week to the Senate Agriculture Committee. He previously served that committee from 1992 to 2000. A Senate rule forced him to give up his committee assignment to chair the Senate Finance Committee. With the rule no longer in place, Grassley requested to be put back on the Agriculture Committee. Trade school attendees will also hear from Foreign Agriculture Service.

(FAS) Administrator Ellen Terpstra. Prior to her FAS appointment in February 2002, Terpstra served as president and chief executive officer of the USA Rice Federation. In addition, United States Trade Representative (USTR) Director for China Trade Policy Bruce Quinn will discuss Chinese accession and other bilateral trade issues.

NCGA Corn Board, Grower Leaders in Chesterfield for Priority and Policy Meeting

Officers, Corn Board members and other grower leaders of the NCGA were in Chesterfield, Mo., Jan. 15-17 to participate in the annual Priority and Policy meeting. The two-day conference gives policy direction to NCGA's Corn Congress, which meets Feb. 27 and March 1 at Commodity Classic in Charlotte, N.C. NCGA officers and the Corn Board met Wednesday. NCGA Action Teams and Corn Board members will review current policies during the meeting and make applicable changes, as well as discuss priorities and issues affecting the nation's corn growers in the next year.

NCGA THIS WEEK

• Jan. 20 NCGA offices will be closed in observance of the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., holiday
• Jan. 20-21 NCGA Corn Board member Bill Horan will attend the Farm Credit Council Annual meeting in San Francisco
• Jan. 22-23 NCGA CEO Rick Tolman will be in Lincoln, Neb., attending the Husker Feed Grains Conference
• Jan. 23-24 NCGA Biotech Working Group Chairman Leon Corzine will be in Kansas City, Mo., attending the Farm Foundation Assurance and Traceability Roundtable meeting

© 2003 National Corn Growers Association

ST. LOUIS OFFICE

WASHINGTON D.C. OFFICE