Secretary of Ag Candidate Francis Thicke calls on opponent to release Farm Bureau questionnaire.

Democratic candidate says Iowa voters deserve a side-by-side comparison of the two seeking to lead Iowa agriculture through challenging times ahead.

FAIRFIELD, Iowa, August 23, 2010 – Iowa Secretary of Agriculture candidate Francis Thicke today released a questionnaire he completed for the Iowa Farm Bureau Federation’s “friend of agriculture” designation so that Iowa voters can determine for themselves where each candidate stands on critical farm issues.

Thicke, a Fairfield dairy farmer, soil scientist and former USDA national program leader, is the Democrats’ nominee to replace one-term Republican Bill Northey. Thicke said he is seeking the office of Iowa Secretary of Agriculture because Iowa agriculture faces major challenges that are not being addressed by his opponent, such as escalating energy costs for agriculture, soil and water quality problems, and conflicts in the countryside caused by Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs).

“We need to make our food and agriculture system more profitable and environmentally sound, with expansion of local food production; sustainable, on-the-farm, renewable energy systems; and ecologically sound livestock production systems,” Thicke said.

Below are Thicke’s unedited answers to the Iowa Farm Bureau Federation (IFBF) questionnaire:

1.  Do you support a farmer’s right to produce under a contract agreement?

Yes

2.  Should farmers be limited in the number of livestock they can own or produce?  If so, how may hogs, cattle, or poultry?

No

3.  Do you support local control for either siting livestock operations or for regulating livestock operations?

I support local control for siting livestock operations.  The comprehensive set of regulations of livestock operations should remain at the state level with the DNR.

4.  What role should Iowa’s Secretary of Agriculture have in the implementation of environmental regulations?

The Iowa Secretary of Agriculture already has a multifaceted role in implementation of environmental regulations.  For example, the Iowa Secretary of Agriculture administers regulation of fertilizer storage facilities, enforcement of the Endangered Species and Protection Act in Iowa, issues licenses for pesticide applicators and commercial fertilizer and pesticide dealers, and administers the plant and plant pest interstate movement permit program.  In short, it is the duty of the Iowa Secretary of Agriculture to administer the environmental regulations assigned to him or her by the Iowa Legislature.

5.  What is your position regarding potential new regulations governing commercial farm nitrogen or phosphorous application rates and practices?  Will you advocate specific changes to current law?

If scientific research indicates that specific fertilizer practices are detrimental to the environment, I will support education, technical assistance, and financial assistance to help Iowa farmers adopt practices that protect the environment.  However, if those measures are insufficient to effect needed change, and the environmental damage of the practices is significant, I will support needed regulation.

6.  Will you be an advocate for the growth of livestock farming in Iowa?  How can this goal be achieved?

I support, and will continue to support, the growth of livestock farming systems in Iowa that are environmentally sound and do not impinge upon the health, quality of life, or property values of livestock producers’ neighbors.

7.  Should the use of earthen manure storage structures be banned?

I do not think earthen manure storage structures should be banned categorically, but I do think they should not be allowed to be built in areas in which the likelihood of water contamination is high, such as on Karst topography or in flood plains.  I do not favor use of public funds to construct earthen lagoons.

8.  What level of government should regulate or govern the use, availability, or production of GMO crops or seed?  Federal, State, or local government?

All levels of government should have authority to regulate the use, availability, or production of GMO crops or seed.  That is fundamental to our democratic form of government.

9.  When a federally approved biotech corn crop is planted adjoining an organic corn crop and the organic crop farmer prefers a field buffer, whose land should the buffer be located on?  The organic farmer’s land or the commercial corn producer’s land?

It is not simply a matter of an organic farmer “preferring” a field buffer.  Some organic and non-GMO markets demand a low threshold level of GMO contamination.  If an organic or non-GMO crop exceeds the threshold, the crop is rejected from the market, with an economic loss to the organic or non-GMO farmer.

If an organic or non-GMO farmer loses a market because the crop has been contaminated with GMO genes from a neighbor’s field, the company that owns the GMO genes that contaminate the organic or non-GMO crop should be liable for the economic damage to the farmer growing the organic or non-GMO crop, if the neighboring farmer has grown the GMO crop in accordance with the guidelines of the company that owns the GMO genes.

10.  What will you do as Secretary of Agriculture to help beginning farmers?

I will support continuation of the Beginning Farmer Loan Program and the Agricultural Assets Transfer Tax Credit.

I will also promote federal programs for beginning farmers, like the CRP Transition Option, new in the 2008 Farm Bill.  This program offers a special incentive of two years of extra CRP rental payments to owners of land which is currently in the CRP but returning to production, if the owners rent or sell to beginning or socially disadvantaged farmers who will use certain specified resource-conserving farming practices.

I will also work to help facilitate the growth of local food production in Iowa, which will provide new opportunities for beginning farmers.  One way I will do that is to offer a home for the Iowa Food Policy Council in the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship.  Iowa has many grassroots organizations working to advance local foods production and marketing.  Iowa also has a growing number of small farmers, farmers markets, and CSAs.  Efforts to facilitate the coordination and expansion of those activities will pay dividends in economic development.

11.  What policies will you support or advocate that will increase the usage of renewable fuels in Iowa?

I will advocate for policies that support the development and implementation of technologies that will allow farmers to use perennial cropping systems to produce renewable fuels on the farm to power their farms.  I will also advocate for feed-in tariff policies that will encourage Iowa farmers to install mid-sized wind-powered systems on farms across the state, to power farms.  In short, I think we need to prepare Iowa agriculture for the end of the cheap-oil era, which is already on our doorstep.

12.  Should farm operations be included in mandatory greenhouse gas reduction requirements?

All sources of greenhouse gas emissions should be included in efforts to reduce those emissions.  Agriculture is a net contributor to greenhouse gases.  Agriculture is also highly dependent on fossil fuels, which leaves us extremely vulnerable to the destabilizing effects of price spikes in fossil fuels.  The common solution to both greenhouse gas emissions and fossil-fuel dependency is for agriculture to develop and adopt farming systems and new technologies that will reduce our dependence on fossil fuels.  Reducing our dependence on fossil fuels will mean more money in the pockets of Iowa farmers and a de facto reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.  Energy independence will be a key component of economic stability and prosperity for Iowa agriculture in the future.

13.  Do you support a carbon tax or required reductions in greenhouse gases for other businesses or industries?

All businesses and industries that contribute net greenhouse gases should be included in efforts to reduce those emissions.

14.  Should farmers be eligible for tax incentives by installing pollution control equipment or containment structures to store manure?

I do not favor tax incentives for manure storage structures for new animal feeding operations that are required by law to have manure containment structures.

15.  What role do you envision for soil conservation programs in protecting our state’s water resources?

I envision soil conservation programs that rely more on biological systems and less on mechanical structures to achieve soil conservations goals.  For example, cover crops and perennial crops in rotation provide the multiple benefits of protecting the soil from erosion, reducing nitrate leaching through tile drains, reducing phosphorous loss to surface waters, and increasing soil carbon sequestration.

16.  How will you advocate for and protect farmer’s economic success as new environmental regulations are proposed?

I will advocate for Iowa farmers to be proactive through innovation to develop and adopt farming systems and practices that are environmentally sound and that circumvent the need for environmental regulations.

An important role of the Iowa Secretary of Agriculture is to provide vision and leadership for Iowa agriculture to ensure that it is not only successful economically, but that it is compatible with the health, environmental and social needs of farmers, rural communities, and all Iowans.  I do not think it is helpful to pit farmers against non-farmers for apparent short-term economic gains.  The Iowa Secretary of Agriculture can play a role in finding common ground between farmers and non-farmers as well as help negotiate conflicting interests.