Posted on 11/10/2005 5:36:05 PM PST by Sub-Driver
Bush Signs $100 Billion Food and Farm Bill
1 hour, 5 minutes ago
President Bush on Thursday signed a $100 billion food and farm spending bill that includes a two-year delay on labels telling grocery shoppers where their meat comes from.
The legislation postpones mandatory meat labeling until 2008. Originally sought by Western ranchers and required by law in 2004, country-of-origin labeling has stalled under pressure from meatpackers and supermarkets who call it a record-keeping nightmare.
The measure also overrides a court ruling on whether products labeled "USDA Organic" can contain
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
The measure covers the Agriculture Department, Food and Drug Administration and related agencies for the fiscal year that began Oct.
How much of a budget did these agencies get in years past? For all I know it was higher than $100billion.
Mine went Feral and every time I get near the couch it's hiding behind, it growls and hisses.
BTW, the land where I grow my produce had laid fallow for more than 5 years before I planted my crops. I fertilize with compost and cow/horse manure. Why should I pay a bureaucrat to certify that my crops are "organic"? Why should the onus be set upon me to prove that the manure had been produced from animals fed only from "organic" sources?
All this regulation is not only obtuse, but it also raises the prices for the products which go to market. I am for tomato's which cost less than $1.00/lbs., corn on the cob for less than 50 cents per ear, or potato's which cost less than $3.00 for a 5lbs bag. These prices were in the Ft. Sam Houston Commissary yesterday.
USDAs 2004 discretionary program outlays are about $20.2 billion, a decrease of $311 million from the 2003 level.
The 2004 FDA budget was 1.7 billion $$.
Sorry for all the posts. For some reason I kept getting an error report and my side browser would shut down when I clicked don't send, so I had to move fast--bureaucrat programming from the Clinton era?
Is that part of the requirements of getting certified organic? That is the reason people pay extra for the certified organic food. It's because they want to know where their food comes from and how it was raised. What's in the manure is what gets in the food. Why else would you need to use it?
I'm all for cheap food, don't get me wrong but I am also for quality as is most people who buy certified organic. The price will come down as the market continues to grow but if it's going to be compromised then what is the point?
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USDAs 2004 discretionary program outlays are about $20.2 billion, a decrease of $311 million from the 2003 level.
The discretionary program outlays are about 27 percent of total USDA outlays and include the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC); programs to address agricultural pest and disease threats; rural development; research and education; soil and water conservation technical assistance; management of the National Forests and Grasslands and other Forest Service activities; and domestic and international marketing assistance.
Mandatory programs account for the remaining 73 percent of USDA outlays, about $53.9 billion in 2004 which is an increase of $1.7 billion above the 2003 level.
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And we haven't even started talking about the farm part of this budget. I'm willing to bet if the time was taken to investigate this we may even see a drop in spending over previous levels.
Is that part of the requirements of getting certified organic?
Yes, you must provide proof that your soil hasn't been "contaminated" by commercial fertilizer.
What's in the manure is what gets in the food. Why else would you need to use it?
Manure is the most natural form of fertilizer available. It provides all the nutrients for a healthy crop.
Commercial fertilzers, OTOH, are concentrated forms of these same nutrients. I see no problem with a farmer using commercial fertilizers since they are just concentrated forms of the natural types of fertilizers.
I was unable to copy and paste the several tidbits which would have been necessary to get a full picture because my side browser kept closing on me after a single copy and paste. Also, I was very much in a hurry to leave. That's why I just left the links. At any rate, you finished my job. Thanks.
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