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Trump set to sign executive order on ag

President Trump is expected to sign an executive order today on agriculture after a farmer roundtable this afternoon.

The order will sunset the White House Rural Council started under President Obama and creates a task force, led by Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue, to review regulations, legislation and policies that limit economic growth for the industry.

Fourteen farmers will meet with Trump and Perdue, including American Farm Bureau president Zippy Duvall, Iowa Secretary of Agriculture and crop farmer Bill Northey, Michigan dairy farmer Hank Choate, National FFA Central Region Vice President Valerie Early of Wykoff, Minnesota, and Tom Demaline of Willoway Nurseries in Avon, Ohio, to discuss major concerns of the industry.

Hank Choate of  Choate’s Belly Acres in Cement City, Michigan tells Brownfield the ramifications of today’s discussion are a heavy burden to carry, but he looks forward to meeting with the President.  “We’re all faced with the concern of ag labor. Many of us, whether it be feed grains, livestock of dairy, beef, pork, poultry or whatever—trade, again another big issue.  And regulatory reform and taxation—those are the primary areas that we will be focusing on.”

White House officials say this is the first time a president has hosted a meeting of this size with farmers this early in an administration since 1981 with President Reagan.

AUDIO: Comments from Hank Choate