NCGA News












June 6, 2003 * Volume 10* Number 22

IN THIS ISSUE:

  • NCGA Calls Senate RFS Vote a Major Victory
  • NCGA Releases RFS Consumer Impacts Study
  • NCGA Pleased With Missouri River Court Ruling
  • NCGA Joins Coalition To Oppose Farm Bill Changes
  • NCGA, USGC Returns to the EU on Biotech Fact-Finding Mission
  • NCGA Encouraged by Canadian Use of Corn for Poultry Feeding
  • NCGA National Corn Yield Contest is Under Way
  • NCGA Pleased to Learn of Grains Council Promotion of PLA
  • LRC Provides Corn Grower Leaders with Online Access to NCGA information

NCGA Calls Senate RFS Vote a Major Victory
NCGA is calling Thursday’s adoption of the Frist/Daschle renewable fuels standard (RFS) amendment a major victory for the renewable fuels industry. (More On This Story)

NCGA Releases RFS Consumer Impacts Study
NCGA, joined by key U.S. Senators, released important findings supporting a renewable fuels standard (RFS). Consumer Impacts of the Renewable Fuels Standard, a study by agriculture expert John Urbanchuk, analyzes positive impacts and significant savings the RFS will have for consumers and the U.S. economy. (More On This Story)

NCGA Pleased With Missouri River Court Ruling
NCGA is pleased with the ruling Tuesday by the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that navigation and flood control on the Missouri River takes precedence over recreation and other interests. (More On This Story)

NCGA Joins Coalition To Oppose Farm Bill Changes
NCGA voiced its opposition Tuesday to any significant changes in the 2002 farm bill in an agriculture and conservation coalition letter to the leadership of the House and Senate Appropriations Committees and the respective subcommittees on agriculture appropriations. (More On This Story)

NCGA, USGC Returns to the EU on Biotech Fact-Finding Mission
Representatives of NCGA and the U.S. Grains Council (USGC) are in European Union on a weeklong biotechnology fact-finding mission that will take them to England, Ireland, France, and Germany. (More On This Story)

NCGA Encouraged by Canadian Use of Corn for Poultry Feeding
NCGA has long recognized the livestock industry as the number-one customer of domestically produced corn. (More On This Story)

NCGA National Corn Yield Contest is Under Way
The 2003 NCGA National Corn Yield Contest (NCYC) is under way, with the initial deadline for entries set for June 16. (More On This Story)

NCGA Pleased to Learn of Grains Council Promotion of PLA
With the end goal being increased use of U.S. corn in Japan, NCGA was pleased to learn of the U.S. Grains Council’s (USGC) Tokyo office helping to distribute a new DVD touting the use of polylactic (PLA) foam applications.

The promotional DVD, entitled “A Legacy for the Future, Expandable Polylactic Acid Beads,” was produced by Kanebo Fashion Research, in cooperation with Kanebo Gohsen, Cargill Japan and the Council, who financed the project.

The new promotional DVD shows how PLA in foam applications can replace petroleum-based polystyrene formed fish boxes at Japanese fresh fish markets, in food packaging and food display trays, molding and packaging materials, in buffering materials (tatmi mats) and as filling materials (cushions, pillows).

The promotional DVD has already been used by Mr. Kozo Hiratake, Industry and Tourism Bureau, City of Kyoto as part of his presentation at the Japan Biodegradable Plastic Society (BPS)’s GreenPla Symposium on Biomass & Biodegradable Plastics. Mr. Hiratake is featured in the promotional DVD and talks about Kyoto City’s use of expandable PLA foam for fish boxes at the Kyoto central fish market in keeping with Kyoto’s international reputation as an environmentally friendly city. --Story provided by U.S. Grains Council

LRC Provides Corn Grower Leaders with Online Access to NCGA information
The NCGA Leader Resource Center (LRC) is the online resource for state and national corn grower leaders. The LRC is available to state board members, Corn Board, national team, committee and working group members, Corn Congress delegates and state and national staffs. The site is available at http://www.insidencga.com by subscription only. If you need your username or password reset or need assistance using the site, please contact membership@ncga.com

Recent information added to the site include:

ETHANOL AND CO-PRODUCTS / ETHANOL COMMITTEE

  • Consumer Impacts of the Renewable Fuel Standard (PDF) by John M. Urbanchuk, Director, LECG, LLC - UPDATED MAY 2003

HEALTH AND NUTRITION

  • Americans Fret Over Fat Kids," - CBSNews.com, May 12, 2003
  • “WHO, Food Industry Discuss Diet Strategy," - API, May 12, 2003

HUMAN RESOURCES (KNOWLEDGE CENTER)

  • HR Reference sites

PUBLICATIONS

  • Inside Information, June 2, 2003 - NCGA Supports Case Brought To WTO Against EU Biotechnology Moratorium
  • Inside Information, June 2, 2003 - Senate Set To Resume Consideration Of The Energy Bill (S. 14), With Action Expected On RFS

Of Special Interest:

Click HERE to read the Senate Energy Bill in full.

NCGA THIS WEEK

  • June 9-10 An NCGA officers meeting will be held in Canton, Ohio
  • June 11-13 NCGA Director of Finance Denise Ritcher will attend the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants Not-For-Profit Conference in Washington, D.C.
  • June 12 NCGA President Fred Yoder will participe in the U.S. Grains Council Executive Committee Meeting in Washington, D.C.

More calendar information is available on the NCGA Leader Resource Center, http://www.insidencga.com.



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