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Northey challenges Vilsack’s ‘King amendment’ comments
Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey is challenging recent comments by U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack in regards to the so-called “King amendment”.
That amendment, sponsored by Iowa Congressman Steve King, would prohibit states from regulating other states’ means of agricultural production. It is contained in the House version of the farm bill and King is fighting to make it part of the final farm bill that is currently in conference committee.
During a recent conference call with reporters, Vilsack said the amendment is “a bit troublesome in that it would create legal challenges and confusion in the market place…it’s one that we have a lot of concerns about.”
In response to Vilsack’s comments, Northey released the following statement.
“It is very troublesome that Secretary Vilsack appears to be siding with California and HSUS rather than standing up for all farmers producing legal and safe agriculture products. If the Secretary truly has concerns about the King amendment, then he should work to address those concerns while the bill is in conference committee rather than speaking out against it.
“I would hope and expect Secretary Vilsack to be supportive of laws that ensure consumers have access to legal and safe products. USDA inspectors approve the sale of egg products. If eggs are safe to be sold in Iowa and around the country they should be able to be sold in California, that is all this amendment is trying to assure.
“California should not be allowed to dictate production methods to the rest of the country. This has the makings of an internal US trade war. If it starts with eggs, you can be sure it won’t end with eggs.”
In this interview with Brownfield, Northey discusses his concerns with the King amendment.
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