The Ohio State Fair is a unique and exciting showcase of Ohio’s agriculture, livestock and natural resources.
At the fair, I had the opportunity to visit with members of the Ohio FFA. These young people were impressive and demonstrated a true commitment to agriculture and Rural America. It is these future leaders who will be challenged to maintain a traditional way of life in Rural America, and to continue to feed and clothe this country and the world.
Also, I met with the Ohio Livestock Coalition, and held constructive dialog on topics such as Animal Disease Traceability, GIPSA rule, regulations, food safety, exports, and value-added agriculture. On the GIPSA rule I acknowledged we received over 60,000 comments on the proposed rule and our final product would be guided by these comments. In addition, I emphasized that the Secretary and I supported value-added marketing and premiums paid to producers.
I informed them that a proposed rule on Traceability would be published soon and that we were engaged with FDA to provide the agriculture perspective on food safety.
As I walked through the fairgrounds, I not only enjoyed the sounds, smells and activities, but I left feeling good about the success and tenacity of the Ohio agriculture and livestock sectors.
