Marshalltown Times Republican, IA
08-03-07
Agriculture secretary defends ethanol during local discussion
By TIMES-REPUBLICAN
T-R PHOTO BY KEN BLACK
Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey greets Rep. Polly Granzow, R-Eldora, during a town hall meeting in Marshalltown Thursday. Northey talked about the state of his department and defended corn-based ethanol during his visit.
Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey defended ethanol in a visit to Marshalltown Thursday, saying recent criticisms of the product are generated by special interests.
Specifically, Northey noted there were stories arguing that ethanol production has influenced the price of popcorn, leading to increases.
“There is some organized opposition creating some of those stories out there,” Northey said.
Northey was in town to discuss agricultural issues in the state.
“It’s certainly a very interesting time in agriculture. There are lots of things going on in this state,” he said.
Regarding the federal farm bill, Northey said he has followed its progress and believes there still could be some changes from the bill that recently passed the House.
“Certainly payment limits are tighter than what they were last time around, but not as tight as some would like. The Senate version will be tighter,” Northey said.
The agriculture secretary said many are surprised a farm bill even passed the House and noted there are still significant hurdles left with the Senate and president.
“We haven’t had a lot input. Usually, it’s the farm groups that they talk to,” he said.
Among water quality issues, the department is looking at nitrogen in surface water and phosporous in the lakes. But the rural areas are only part of the equation. The other part deals with water runoff in the urban areas.
“We are looking at the whole picture of water quality in the state,” Northey said.
The department is also re-launching a Web site known as Choose Iowa, which helps buyers find producers located in Iowa.
“We have more than 1,000 folks listed on that Choose Iowa Web site,” Northey said. “Iowa State also has a Web site called Market Master. … People want local products.”
One of the biggest challenges is determining what constitutes an Iowa product.
“A&E milk is a piece of cake, but A&E orange juice?” Northey said. “It’s bottled here but we don’t grow many oranges in Iowa.”
Regarding odor issues, Northey gives a good deal of credit to Iowa State University, who has done a lot of research, especially with hog confinements.
“They are able to remove 80 to 90 percent of the odor from the air [at hog lots],” he said.
It is done by running the air through wet tree bark, which scrubs the air before it is expelled from the facility.